A New Sorcerer
by Silver Saire
Summary: Voldemort's after the Millennium Items, so Dumbledore invites Seto, Mokuba, Yugi, Bakura, and Malik to Hogwarts. But soon, they realize that he's after something else. Chapter 12 is Hogsmeade. YY, RB, MM, S?
1. The Letters

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.   
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
It was a cold night, but the room had a fire blazing in the grate, warming the two occupants just enough. One was sitting in a high backed armchair; the other was on the floor and appeared to be sifting through piles of books.   
  
"Have you found anything yet, Wormtail?" asked the one in the chair. His voice was strangely high pitched, and cold as a sudden blast of icy wind.   
  
"N-no, my Lord," the other stuttered nervously. "I've looked everywhere, all of the modern magical theories, the-" he was cut off by the other.   
  
"Fool!" he hissed. "We will not find the way to gain more even power in modern books! Dumbledore already knows about all of them! I've already been denied one thing; don't make this a second one! The prophecy's gone and I didn't even get to hear it! Most of my loyal Death Eaters have been captured, too. But never mind them, they will escape. Look in the most ancient books of magic! Magic that has been long forgotten!"   
  
"But master, those are just myths and legends. Surely you do not believe them?"  
  
"Of course they are true! All legends and myths have origins that are real! Keep searching!"  
  
  
  
"Yes, my Lord."  
  
They continued to sit in silence, the man called Wormtail hurriedly flipping pages. An hour passed. Then two. They continued to sit there. Finally, Wormtail broke the silence. "My Lord! I have found something!" He spoke excitedly, his silver index finger pausing at a paragraph in a very old, very worn book. The other read the page, taking a definite interest in it.  
  
  
'Once, when ancient evil Egyptian sorcerers threatened to  
destroy the world with their summoned monsters, a young but  
powerful pharaoh used his magic to seal them away. But the  
sorcerers found a way to bring them to life, and the terror  
continued. It was said that the pharaoh used seven very  
magical items to trap them forever. These were the seven  
Millennium Items. They were seven items that possessed  
magical qualities. Each item had a different power, lying  
dormant inside until the chosen one came across it. Legend  
says that when all of these items are put together, the  
owner of all of them will have the power to rule the whole  
world.'  
  
  
  
"Yes, this is exactly what I've been looking for, Wormtail! Track these items down at once!"  
  
"Y-yes, my Lord." And with a swish of his cloak, and a small popping sound, Wormtail vanished.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
The doorbell to number twelve, Grimmauld Place rang loudly. An old woman in a portrait began screaming. And an elderly man swept across the hall to open the door. A woman with spiky bubblegum pink hair was breathing heavily outside, obviously having just run a great deal.  
  
"Tonks! What's the matter? Are you all right? Come in!" She gratefully did so, and they headed off towards the kitchen. Another woman was already sitting there. She had her graying hair up in a tight bun, and she immediately stood up as they arrived.   
  
"Oh, my goodness!" she exclaimed. "Tonks, what happened?"   
  
"I-was-worried-that-you-wouldn't-be-here!" she panted. "You-know-after- Sirius-" she broke off.   
  
"Yes, as much as it pains me to set foot inside this house without Sirius in here, we still have to use it as headquarters. It's probably one of the safest places left." He paused. "Tonks, what did happen?"   
  
"You-know-who! He has another target! Something about seven items that have magical powers. When they're put together, the owner will have enough power to rule the world! And I found out that many of the items are in one city."  
  
She hesitated, then said, "I think it's called Domino or something. It's in Japan. Kingsley said that the owners of the objects are kids, and their close friends know all about the items."   
  
"They're Muggles?" interrupted the other woman.  
  
"Yeah, I think so. Minerva, Albus, those kids are in danger! We have to do something! And there's also an individual in that area who has traces of sorcerer's blood in him, with powers that have not been awakened yet. You-Know-Who will go after him for sure!"  
  
The wizened man appeared to be thinking. Finally, he came to a conclusion. "We'll invite them to Hogwarts," he stated. "It'll be safe enough there. I will send them letters immediately. And I think their friends shall be invited, too. They might also be in danger. But of course, I can't make them accept. If they choose not to go, then we will just have to see what happens."   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
  
It was pouring like mad outside, and there were seven certain people hanging out at the Kame Game Shop. Yugi Motou was dueling Joey Wheeler in the center of the room. For a sixteen year old, Yugi was very short. He owned the Millennium Puzzle, given to him by his grandfather. Once he had pieced it together, he was bonded with the spirit of the puzzle, who just happened to be a 5, 000 year old pharaoh.  
  
His opponent was as different as he could get. Joey was almost twice as tall as Yugi. His messy blonde hair was almost covering his amber eyes completely. Despite their differences, they were the best of friends, and were just dueling for fun. But it was obvious who was losing. Yugi's lifepoints were 3800, barely touched, and Joey's lifepoints were down to 100.  
  
"I play Dragon Nails! It increases my Red Eyes Black Dragon's attack power by 600, making it 3000! That's more than your Dark Magician's. Red Eyes, attack his Dark Magician!" Joey ordered. He had a strong accent that was easy to notice. He whooped loudly, convinced that he had taken out one of Yugi's most powerful monsters. However, when the smoke cleared, the Dark Magician was still standing.  
  
"You forgot about my face down card again, Joey," Yugi reminded him. "Activate the Spell-Binding Circle! Your Red Eyes's attack is reduced to 2300. Dark Magician, attack with Dark Magic!" They all watched as the tiny Dark Magician obliterated the Red Eyes Black Dragon on the field and saw Joey's lifepoints drop down to zero.  
  
"Good show, Yugi!" called another teen from the sidelines. He was Ryou Bakura, a mild tempered boy that owned the Millennium Ring. He brushed his shoulder-length white hair out of his way as he thought about his yami. Yami Bakura usually popped out occasionally to watch duels. He decided to investigate. If anybody had been watching his eyes, they would have seen the chocolate brown orbs cloud over and gain an unfocused appearance.  
  
:Um, yami? Are you feeling okay? Because-meep!:  
  
His yami, who had probably been baiting him all along, had pressed him against the wall of the corridor that contained both of their soul rooms. He had suddenly started nipping at Ryou's neck, causing him to emit odd squeaks, and then other...sounds.  
  
These sounds weren't heard in the real world, though.  
  
Beside the distant Ryou was Malik Ishtar. He had turned less evil, and his yami had turned less evil. They were kind of friends with certain other people, namely Yami Bakura, but Seto was okay, too. The blond haired Egyptian also liked his hair slightly longer than, uh, usual. His lavender eyes surveyed the scene before him. Joey was still losing every single duel he fought with Yugi. How pathetic. Maybe he could use the Millennium Rod to control him again and defeat the Pharaoh's brat. He mused over that idea for a while, and then decided against it. It was raining. Who wanted to do evil things when it was raining?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Oh yeah. Maybe it would help to know what's happened since Battle City. Especially with the "bad guys" and the people with attitudes (*cough cough* Seto).  
  
Malik and his yami weren't as evil-I didn't say "evil no more", I said "weren't AS evil". So basically, they're still evil, but not intent upon destroying Yugi and his yami anymore. He was now friends with Yugi, Ryou, and Yami Bakura. Seto and Mokuba were so-so, as was Yami. All of the others, he didn't like, period.  
  
Seto could now could now carry a conversation without insulting the other person too much. You have to be careful, though. He can still act like how he was before-cold and uncaring. One more thing-he's still the CEO of his own multibillion company, still got a lot of power, not to mention money, so don't mess with him.  
  
Yami Bakura was working on getting less...evil. Ryou had insisted upon it, and...yeah...  
  
And now both Yugi and Seto are the number one duelist in the world! They dueled several times and they always ended up in ties.  
  
By the way, is you were wondering where he was, Tristan died. *smiles happily* Yup! The stupidest character in Yu-Gi-Oh! died in a motorcycle accident. Or did he get murdered? Um, I forgot, but who cares anyway? I tried to make Tea die too, but I didn't succeed...  
  
So, now that you know what's been going on, back to the story!  
  
Sorry if you still find stupid, lame, and boring descriptions of everyone!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Ohh! I guess I did forget about your down card" Joey admitted, not looking concerned at all.  
  
"Whatever! Yugi, I challenge you to a duel!" Everyone around the arena sweatdropped.  
  
  
  
"That's got to be Joey's 60th time asking today!" Mokuba said to Seto.  
  
"No, it's his 59th," his older brother corrected him.  
  
  
  
"Oops, I guess I lost count after 52," said Mokuba sheepishly, indigo eyes lighting up as he smiled up at his older brother.  
  
And Seto's eyes, on the other hand, were an icy blue. In addition to being a child prodigy, he was the CEO of his own company, Kaiba Corporations. It specialized in holographic imagers and computer technology beyond most people's dreams.  
  
They were standing around one of his latest inventions, a miniature dueling arena. They had used it because there wasn't enough room for a full sized one. It was 6ftx3.5ft and was ideal for small areas. The holographic images were just as good though, except for the fact that they were tiny.   
  
Meanwhile, the others were trying to get Joey to stop trying to duel Yugi again, who, even without the spirit to help him, was a great duelist and would probably crush him again.   
  
"Uh, Joey, Tea's right. We should take a break. We've been dueling for a long time. Why don't we-" Yugi was interrupted by a loud tapping sound. It seemed to be coming from the window nearest to Seto.  
  
Seto strode over to it, threw the window open, and something brown and wet fell in, as well as a whole lotta rain.   
  
"What in the name of Ra is that?" Malik asked, peering closer. The thing valiantly got up, hopped over to Kaiba, and stretched its leg out. There was a thick envelope attached to it, which, to Seto's great surprise as he removed it, was perfectly dry.  
  
Seto had now recognized the thing as an owl. It ruffled its feathers once, shook some water out, and flew back out of the window into the storm outside. Everybody was staring after it in shock. In the few seconds of a flash of lightening, they could see a dark shape being knocked around by the wind, zigzagging everywhere.   
  
Seto turned back to the envelope. It was made out of yellowish parchment and had been addressed with emerald green ink. There was no stamp. He flipped it over. He saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, and eagle, a badger, and a snake surrounding a large letter H. He opened the envelope, only to find about a dozen letters, all written on the same type of thick parchment as the envelope. He unfolded the first one that he pulled out, and read quickly and silently:   
  
  
HOGWARTS SCHOOL  
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY  
  
  
  
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)  
  
  
  
  
Dear Mr. Kaiba,  
  
We are pleased to inform you that you have been chosen to  
participate in a special event occurring at Hogwarts School of  
Witchcraft and Wizardry this year. This involves the enrolling of  
foreign students to learn magic. For more information, please meet  
Professor Dumbledore at Domino Park on August 2 at 1 PM. As  
students above 3rd year are allowed to visit the village of  
Hogsmeade, please get your permission form signed and ready if you  
decide to attend. Also, be aware that you will need your  
parent/guardian's consent to attend Hogwarts.  
  
  
Term begins on September 1. Please find enclosed a list  
of all necessary books and equipment, and a permission form to visit  
the nearby village of Hogsmeade. We will be notified if you accept,  
there will be no need to send an owl.  
  
Yours sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagall,  
Deputy Headmistress   
  
He looked up. They were all looking at him apprehensively.  
  
"What's it say? Huh? What's it say, big brother?" Mokuba asked excitedly, bouncing up and down. His bushy hair was swinging everywhere and managed to hit Tea in the face. The others ignored her indignant exclamation.  
  
"Yeah, Kaiba, what does that letter have in it?" Joey asked.  
  
"See for yourself, there letters for everyone here," he replied, tossing their letters, list of supplies, and Hogsmeade permission forms to them. He watched their faces as they read the letter. "Sounds like one big prank, doesn't it?" he asked.  
  
Yugi, however, said, "I don't think so, Seto. It all sounds too serious for a trick. Well, the only way we're going to find out is by going to the park tomorrow." Everybody looked at him in surprise.  
  
"What makes you think that it's not a joke, Yugi?" Tea asked.  
  
He shrugged. "I just have this feeling." They all seemed to think it over for a few minutes, with the exception of Mokuba, who was jumping up and down, trying to get Seto to go to the Domino Park and see what it was about.  
  
Then, Tea announced in a clear voice, over Mokuba's pleading, "I'm not even going to find out about it. There's like, absolutely no chance that I'll be able to go anyway. My parents would never let me, and I want to continue studying dance. Like, say this all turns out to be true, and I go. Well, what if a letter comes from New York for me to go learn dance there, and I'm at that place? I'm sorry. I really want to be with you guys. But remember, no matter what, no matter how many differences we have, no matter what we get put through separated, we'll always be friends." She said all of this last part with her hand over her heart.  
  
She didn't really seem to notice that almost all of the people in the room were gagging. Seto had even covered Mokuba's ears. At any rate, they seemed to be glad that she wasn't going to join them.  
  
"Nah, I don't think I'll go," said Joey. "I've gotta keep an eye out for Serenity."  
  
Two out, that meant that there were only five people left that were in.  
  
"Well, I'm also going because I think that this might have something to do with the Millennium Items." Yugi confessed quietly. "So...so I think that Ryou and Malik should come, too."  
  
They were all looking at Seto and Mokuba now. "Please, Seto, please say that you'll let me go!" Mokuba was saying. Seto looked doubtful.   
  
"I don't know, Mokuba. This all sounds-" Mokuba had given him Begging Face #1. This was the puppy dog eyes.  
  
He shook his head. "Nope, that one's not going to work."  
  
Mokuba turned to Begging Face #2. This was a mixture of the puppy dog eyes and going down on knees. Seto stayed firm.  
  
Mokuba put on Begging Face #3...and Seto felt himself weakening. Everyone in the room had melted at the expression, except for Yugi, of course. He could get just about as cute at some times. Seto just had to give in. "Very well," he finally sighed. "We will go to Domino Park tomorrow and decide from there." Mokuba cheered and hugged his brother.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
The next morning was wet and humid, due to the previous day's weather. And it was pretty.different at the Kaiba residence. Mokuba had gotten Seto to take a day off, and they were currently playing in the pool. Okay, Mokuba was playing in the pool, and Seto was sitting at one of the glass tables that surrounded the huge pool...under an umbrella, of course. He had been staring at a spot in gardens for so long without blinking that Mokuba had decided that he had fallen asleep. And what better way to have fun than tip a bucket of water on a big brother's head?  
  
He got out of the pool silently, glancing at Seto. His eyes were still glazed over. He sneaked over to the equipment shed and got the biggest bucket there. It looked like it could hold 4 or 5 gallons, at the very least. He carried it over to the pool, checking on his brother once more. Still safe. He filled it up halfway, because he would never be able to lift it with 5 gallons of water in it. He lugged it to his brother, and SPLASH!  
  
The maids and butlers were having a field day. After all, it wasn't every day that you saw your employer dripping wet and chasing an equally wet little brother around the house.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*   
  
They met at the wrought iron gates of Domino Park. There, they saw an old man wearing what looked like an emerald green cloak, even though it was warm and sunny. He had half moon spectacles that were perched on a very long, very crooked nose that looked like it had been broken a couple of times. And his silver hair and beard went all the way down to his waist. People were giving him strange looks, but he didn't seem to mind. He spotted them and walked over to them.   
  
"Misters Kaiba, Kaiba, Motou, Ishtar, and Bakura, I presume?" he asked. They nodded. "Good. I'm Albus Dumbledore. Now I was planning to talk to you here, but it's more crowded than I had anticipated. Do you know of anywhere where we can talk and not be heard?"   
  
"We can go to Kaiba Corp., right Seto? It's a lot closer than any of our houses." Mokuba piped up. His big brother had already forgiven him about the pool incident. Well, at least he thought he had. Seto nodded, then took out his cell phone.  
  
"It's me. Now listen up. We need transportation for six people. Meet us at the North Entrance of the Domino Park. You have two minutes or you're fired." He turned back to the others, who were staring at him, having overheard his conversation. "Two minutes until they get here," he said simply. Sure enough, exactly two minutes later, a black limousine rolled up. They could make out a silver KC logo, which was on a lot of Seto's stuff. Seto and Mokuba got in. They cautiously followed.  
  
"Where to, Mister Kaiba?" a voice asked.   
  
"Kaiba Corp.," he said briskly, then pressed a button and sat back. A laptop rose and stationed itself in front of him. He started typing away, his fingers a blur. Mokuba had already gotten his videogames out and was offering controllers to Yugi, Malik, Ryou, and Dumbledore.  
  
"It might take a little while," he explained. "The traffic's really bad downtown."   
  
"No thank you," Ryou and Dumbledore said at the same time.   
  
But Malik had grabbed a controller and was pushing one to Yugi. "Let the King of Games play, I want to see if he can win at modern games," he said. While they had been talking, the blinds had been mechanically drawn, the lights had been shut off, and a screen had descended. In addition to their controllers, Mokuba had given them each a pair of headphones. "We might disturb Seto," he whispered. A few minutes into the game, a fourth player appeared. They all looked sideways in surprise. What looked like Yami Bakura had taken a controller, too.  
  
Dumbledore had watched the whole scene. He had seen who he thought was Bakura grabbing a controller too and had distinctly heard him mumble 'Baka hikari' before joining in. He didn't comment on it, however.  
  
He looked beyond them. Seto was still typing furiously. There were a considerable number of windows up on his laptop's screen, all of them bearing complicated looking charts and statistics. Then he looked out of the window. Mokuba hadn't been joking. The cars were all moving at a crawl. Five minutes passed. Then ten. Finally, after fifteen minutes, they turned left and into a huge parking lot, nearly full with cars. There were about five spaces that looked longer than normal parking spaces. These all said, 'RESERVED'. The limo parked in one of these. The chauffeur quickly stepped out and held open the door for them. Dumbledore stepped out and looked up. They were in the shadow of an enormous building. It was in a peculiar shape, though. In the middle was a logo, KC. The letters were slightly overlapping each other.  
  
The four of them were still at the video game. Seto pressed a button conveniently located on the door. The videogame instantly shut off. "Sorry, Seto!" Mokuba said, taking off his headphones.  
  
Seto was glaring past him at Malik. "Hey, psychopath, do you mind moving so that the rest of us can get out?" he asked coldly. Grumbling, Malik complied.  
  
They walked in. A woman sitting at a desk only saw Dumbledore, Ryou, Malik, and Yugi and said in a bored voice, "Visitors, please sign in here." Then she caught sight of Mokuba and Seto. "M-Mister Kaiba!" she stammered, clearly terrified of him. "I didn't see you!"  
  
"There's no need to sign in," he informed them. "Follow me." They followed him into one of the many elevators. He pushed one of the buttons in the middle. To their surprise, nobody got on at any of the floors. They didn't have to stop at all.  
  
When Yugi asked about this, Mokuba said, "It's Seto's private elevator." Then Malik started an argument about who was winning back in the car. They were talking about it all the way to the 56th floor.  
  
"Wasn't I winning?"  
  
"If I remember correctly, the pharaoh was winning"  
  
"Well I was better than you, Tomb Robber."  
  
"No you weren't! I was in second place!"  
  
Yugi had remained quiet, though. He had recognized Yami Bakura at once, for the real Ryou didn't talk like that. He hoped that Yami Bakura would let Ryou regain control for the "meeting". To Seto, Dumbledore, and Yugi's great relief, they all fell silent as the elevator doors opened. They walked down a hall with doors on every side. Seto stopped at one and punched the access code into a security device located near the door. 'ACCESSED' flashed on the screen, and a green light blinked on. They entered the room, and Malik, Yugi, and Ryou gasped.   
  
It seemed to be a huge conference room. There was a long wooden rectangular table with chairs around it, and a food and drink bar. (How Malik had resisted the urge to stuff himself silly we still don't know.) They seated themselves on leather sofas at the other side of the room. There were three clustered around a fancy crystal table. Dumbledore cleared his throat and began to speak.  
  
"As you know, I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We have invited you to study magic with us. Let me tell you about Hogwarts. You will live there, and take different magical classes. If you accept, I will send you a list of all the extra classes that you can take. The regular classes are Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Astronomy. You will learn more about Hogwarts as you spend more time there. Why, even I don't know all of its secrets! If you decide-" he was interrupted by Seto.  
  
"Why have we been chosen? You can't have picked us out randomly, there's no way you could have chosen six people that know each other so well."  
  
  
  
Dumbledore smiled. "Yes, you are quite correct. However, I cannot tell you all of it right now. But let me fill you in. Not too long ago, there was this powerful and wizard...  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
See? I edited it...a little. I'm not one of those people who think reviews are everything, but if you like the story so far or have any suggestions, please do so.  
  
I will be thanking one particular person in the next few chapters. t.a.g.0 has helped a great deal with this story, giving me tips on how to write. So I'd like to thank her a lot-I don't think I could have made it this far without her.  
  
Thank you t.a.g.0! 


	2. Dumbledore

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.  
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"So this Voldemort person is after the Millennium Items?" Yugi asked. "And he's going to try to use them to control the world?"  
  
"That's got to be the hundredth time someone has tried that!" said Malik.  
  
Dumbledore turned to face him. Malik answered the unasked question.  
  
"It's true. You won't believe how many people have tried to take all of the Millennium items and use them to 'rule the world.' But it doesn't even work. Most of the people don't even know how to use the items' power. Only few can control an item, and even so, they still won't know how to use the other items. I bet this weird Voldemort guy's going to get the items, and then realize that he doesn't know how to use them. Ha! That'd be a laugh!"  
  
"Yes, and that's why you must come to Hogwarts. Until he discovers that fact, he will continue trying to acquire the Millennium items. You will be in grave danger if you don't come to Hogwarts, for Hogwarts is one of the safest places in the wizarding world. He will come after you, to get your items, and he might possibly injure others, too. We'll have to cast the Fidelius Charm on your homes, and your friends' homes. Once he discovers that you aren't there, he'll surely try to get your family and friends to get to you."  
  
Seto said, "Wait, you said that he was after the Millennium Items, right? That means Yugi, Ryou, and Malik. What do Mokuba and I have to do with it?"  
  
"Ah, that I cannot tell you right now. I will say this, though. You will also be in danger, once Voldemort realizes that he cannot use the Millennium Items to gain power over the world. He will go after you, instead. You will find out more as you stay at Hogwarts."  
  
Seto thought about it. If he let Mokuba go, he would have to go, meaning leaving Kaiba Corporations for a good part of the year. But if they stayed here, it would mean putting Mokuba in danger. Add that last factor to his puppy dog eyes and the correct decision would be to go. Even if it meant going to a weird place he had never heard of. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he saw Seto's resistance snap.  
  
"Fine, we'll attend this school of yours," he said. "But I'll have to check in on my company occasionally."  
  
"That can be arranged," Dumbledore replied. "What about you three?"  
  
"I believe this crap, and I'll go to this school," said Malik, shrugging. "It'll be a lot more interesting that hanging around here."  
  
Meanwhile, Yami Bakura had been talking with Ryou.  
  
:: If the Grave Keeper's going, then I am too. Say yes, Ryou!::  
  
:Okay, okay, don't give me a headache about it. Sheesh, I was going to anyway...:  
  
"Count me in." :See, 'Kura? Oh, just don't cause any trouble with Malik, 'kay?:  
  
"Me, too," Yugi also said. /Yami! I was right! It does have to do with the Millennium Items! Um, Yami?/ His yami was asleep, and falling off his invisible bed thingy.  
  
"Very well. Now that that's been settled, I must warn you, you must not tell anyone else where you are going. I have already cast a Memory Charm on Ms. Tea Gardener and Mr. Joseph Wheeler. They do not know anything about Hogwarts at the time. All they know is that Yugi and Malik were chosen to participate in an exchange program in America; Seto had to go do something for Kaiba Corp. and decided to take Mokuba with him; and Bakura was invited to visit his father and participate in an excavation for the whole year. I have already contacted your teachers and correspondents and made excuses. So, you may not tell anybody about the wizarding world. Is that understood?" There were nods from everyone.  
  
"Good. Now, I'm sure you will fit in very nicely at Hogwarts. We will tell them that you are foreign students part of an exchange program. Let's see...Seto, Yugi, Ryou, and Malik will be joining the sixth years. You'll catch up soon. Most of the teachers have been notified and they will help you learn the bit that you missed. And Mokuba here will fit in very well with the first years. You'll be able to learn everything from the beginning. I have someone waiting for you in the lobby of Kaiba Corporations. You can't miss him. He will take you to buy your supplies. Your belongings will be transported afterwards. Then, you'll be staying at a wizarding inn for the rest of the month, until September 1st, where you will board the Hogwarts Express at Kings Cross. Here are your tickets. Good luck, and see you at Hogwarts! Remember, ask for Hagrid!" And with that, he disappeared with a small pop.  
  
"How'd he do that?" Malik asked in wonder.  
  
  
  
"I don't know, but I think we should go back down to the lobby," Yugi replied. He was now thoroughly convinced that he could trust Dumbledore no matter what. Yami had said that he felt a strong aura around him, and that he could be trusted.  
  
They made their way back down to the lobby, where they saw an enormous man. He was at least twice as tall as a normal person. A wild mane of shaggy black hair was accompanied by an equally wild beard. He had a moleskin overcoat on and looked very out of place. In his hand was a battered pink umbrella. Several people were asking him questions and a couple of security guards were trying to get him to go out. That stupid secretary was in the middle of the crowd that was beginning to form. Muttering curses under his breath, Seto strode over to the crowd. Everybody backed away at the sight of him, and he soon got to the center.  
  
"What is the meaning of this?" he asked icily.  
  
"Mr. Kaiba! This man refuses to leave and won't tell us why he's here!" a security guard quickly said.  
  
"I already told you, I'm supposed ter be waiting for five people!" the giant of a man protested.  
  
Seto suddenly remembered Dumbledore's words. "Are you Hagrid?" he asked.  
  
"Yep. Yer one of the people I'm supposed to be taking to Diagon Alley, aren't you?"  
  
Wondering what in the world Diagon Alley was, he replied, "Yes, I am. You may wait there." He waved his hand at where the others were standing. Then he turned to the security guards and the stupid secretary. "Let's see here. Security may go. Who was responsible for trying to get rid of this person?" he asked softly. Just as he thought. Expecting praise for their "good deed", his stupid lobby secretary and a few other people raised their hands, even though they were all at least 10 years older than him. "Okay...hmm..." He was still using his dangerously soft voice.  
  
Back with Hagrid, Yugi, Ryou, and Malik, Mokuba whispered, "Uh oh, they're in trouble. That's the voice that he uses when he's about to- yeah, look." He began to count backwards silently. Ten, nine, eight...  
  
Seto studied all of the people that had raised their hands. There were nine of them. Perfect. He detonated. "The nine of you, you're fired! I expect your offices to be cleaned out by the end of the week! Never let me see you in here again! Everyone else, get back to work or expect a cut in your salaries!" He turned and strode towards the group, still standing in front of his personal elevator. He felt...considerably happier. They were all goggling at him, except for Mokuba.  
  
Seto turned to Hagrid, a questioning look in his eyes.  
  
"Oh, yeah. Forgot to introduce meself," he said sheepishly. "Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts, and also yer Care of Magical Creatures teacher, if you decide to take it, o' course. But call me Hagrid, everyone does."  
  
"I'm Yugi Motou."  
  
"Ryou Bakura."  
  
"Malik Ishtar."  
  
"I'm Mokuba Kaiba and this is my brother Seto."  
  
"Er, right. I'm supposed to take you to London to get yer school supplies. Anyway, let's go outside. And sorry about that," he added, jabbing his thumb back at the lobby, as they made their way to the limo.  
  
Hagrid seemed pretty impressed with the limo. "I'll let you get some money to exchange. Then we'll go to London an' get your supplies. Whose house are we stopping at first?" Sighing, Seto typed something onto his laptop and pressed another button. A second screen came down, and on it was a list.  
  
Yugi Motou Ryou Bakura Malik Ishtar Kaiba Estate   
  
He pressed yet another button, and said, "Go to the following people's houses and stop at the Kaiba Estate last." The list had probably been sent to the front.  
  
"Yes sir," came the reply of the driver.  
  
He began to type away on his laptop again. The others were playing videogames again.  
  
The limo came to a stop in front of the Game Shop. They decided to wait inside the car for Yugi. Several minutes later he was out and waving good- bye to his grandfather.  
  
"I explained everything really fast. He thought that the whole thing sounded exciting. And he understands about not telling anyone."  
  
They proceeded to go to Ryou's house. He was faster than Yugi, and came out with a small knapsack.  
  
"I left a note for my father just in case he came back and forgot where I went."  
  
Malik took longer than any of them. Finally, he came out, rubbing his backside.  
  
"It's my sister's way of saying good-bye," he said sourly.  
  
All of the houses had been located in the middle of the city. Now they were entering what looked like more rural areas. They came to a stop at a magnificent set of gates.  
  
A cool female voice said, "Identification?"  
  
"Seto Kaiba," Seto said.  
  
"Voice identified. Please proceed Seto Kaiba." The gates opened, and they were going up a very long driveway, around a fountain, and stopping in front of a gigantic mansion.  
  
Seto went inside and came out two minutes later, pocketing something.  
  
"Right," grunted Hagrid. He started rummaging around in his many coat pockets, finally pulling out what looked like an old rubber tire. "This," he held the tire up, "is a Portkey. It'll take us to London in less than a minute. Now all you have to do is touch it-just one finger will do-" He looked around. "Everyone set? Get ready, then. One...two...three."  
  
It happened immediately: Yugi felt as though a hook just behind his navel had been suddenly jerked irresistibly forward. His feet left the ground; he turned and saw Ryou on his left and Malik on his right; they were all speeding forward in a howl of wind and swirling color; his forefinger was stuck to the tire as though it was pulling him magnetically onward and then- " His feet slammed into the ground; Malik staggered into him and he fell over; the Portkey hit the ground near his head with a heavy thud. Yugi looked up. Seto, Mokuba, and Hagrid were still standing, though looking very windswept (except for Seto); everyone else was on the ground.  
  
"Ow...what was that all about?" he heard Malik groan from somewhere beside him.  
  
"I don't know," he answered truthfully. He stood up, dusting himself off.  
  
They looked around for the first time. They had arrived in an alleyway.  
  
"Are we really in London?" asked Ryou.  
  
"Yep. We'd better get going, too. You can check in at the inn and then get yer stuff. Come on, follow me." They followed him down a busy street. "This is it," said Hagrid, coming to a halt, "the Leaky Cauldron. It's a famous place."  
  
It was a tiny, grubby-looking pub. If Hagrid hadn't pointed it out, they wouldn't even have noticed it was there. The people hurrying by didn't glance at it. Their eyes slid from the big bookshop on one side to the record shop on the other as if they couldn't see the Leaky Cauldron at all. In fact, Yugi had the most peculiar feeling that only they could see it. Before he could mention this, Hagrid had strode inside. They followed.  
  
For a famous place, it was very dark and shabby. A few old women were sitting in a corner, drinking tiny glasses of sherry. One of them was smoking a long pipe. A little man in a top hat was talking to the old bartender, who was quite bald and looked like a toothless walnut. The low buzz of chatter stopped when they walked in. Everyone seemed to know Hagrid; they waved and smiled at him, and the bartender reached for a glass, saying, "The usual, Hagrid?"  
  
"Can't Tom, I'm on Hogwarts business," said Hagrid, stepping sideways to reveal Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Seto, and Mokuba.  
  
"Ah, yes. The students that are going to be staying here until term starts?" With a nod from all of them, he said, "Your luggage has already arrived and has been taken to your rooms. I'm guessing you'll want to be shopping for your school supplies? Go on, then, and have fun!"  
  
They dropped all of their things on the spot and Hagrid led them through the bar and out into a small, walled courtyard, where there was nothing but a trashcan and a few weeds. He started counting the bricks in the wall above the trashcan. "Three up...two across..." he muttered. "Right, stand back."  
  
He tapped the wall three times with the point of his umbrella. To their amazement, the brick he had touched quivered-it wriggled-in the middle, a small hole appeared-it grew wider and wider-a second later they were facing an archway large enough even for Hagrid, an archway onto a cobbled street that twisted and turned out of sight.  
  
  
  
"Welcome," said Hagrid, "to Diagon Alley."   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
I know a lot of people didn't like how I copied the same descriptions, but I was too lazy to change them. Check in a couple of months and I might have added my own descriptions.  
  
Until then, sorry!  
  
Don't forget, suggestions are ALWAYS welcome.  
  
Thanks, t.a.g.0, for your help in pointing out many mistakes that I wouldn't have noticed in a million lifetimes! 


	3. Diagon Alley

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.  
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
:Wow! 'Kura, come out and look at this!:  
  
Yami Bakura materialized in spirit form, as did Yami Yugi, at the exact same time.  
  
The only other person who could see them besides their hikaris was Malik. He raised an eyebrow at them, and then turned his attention back to all of the shops, giving Yami Bakura an evil grin when he saw all kinds of joke shops and weapon shops.  
  
Hagrid grinned at their amazement. Or what he thought was amazement. Yami Bakura was staring intently at a knife with a shining blade in a display case. Actually, he was practically drooling over it.  
  
"That's what all of the Muggle-borns do," Hagrid chuckled, still mistaking the look on Yami Bakura's face. "We'll go to Gringotts first, it's the wizard bank. You can exchange yer money there."  
  
They walked through the archway and it shrunk instantly back into solid wall. All kinds of shops were scattered on the sides. The nearest shop had a stack of cauldrons outside with a sign hanging over them; Cauldrons - All Sizes - Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver - Self-Stirring - Collapsible.  
  
A low soft hooting came from a dark shop with a sign saying Eeylops Owl Emporium - Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown, and Snowy. There were barrels of slimy substances outside the Apothecary, and several boys had their noses pressed against a window with broomsticks in it.  
  
"Wow," they heard one of them say, "the Firebolt's still the fastest broom in the world-"  
  
There were shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and strange silver instruments they had never seen before, windows stacked with barrels of bat spleens and eels' eyes, tottering piles of spell books, quills, and rolls of parchment, potion bottles, globes of the moon...  
  
"Here we are," said Hagrid.  
  
They had reached a snowy white building that towered over the other little shops. Standing beside its burnished bronze doors, wearing a uniform of scarlet and gold, was-  
  
"That's a goblin," said Hagrid quietly as they walked up the white stone steps toward him. The goblin was about the same height as Yugi. He had a swarthy, clever face, a pointed beard and, they noticed, very long fingers and feet. He bowed as they walked inside. Now they were facing a second pair of doors, silver this time, with words engraved upon them:  
  
Enter, stranger, but take heed  
Of what awaits the sin of greed,  
For those who take, but do not earn,  
Must pay most dearly in their turn.  
So it you seek beneath our floors  
A treasure that was never yours,  
  
Thief, you have been warned, beware  
  
Of finding more than treasure there.  
  
A pair of goblins bowed them through the silver doors and they were in a vast marble hall. About a hundred more goblins were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in large ledgers, weighing coins in brass scales, examining precious stones through eyeglasses. There were too many doors to count leading off the hall, and yet more goblins were showing people in and out of these. Hagrid led them over to the counter.  
  
"Er, we're here to exchange some money," he said. The goblin looked down at them. They all shoved Yugi forward first, him being the weakest, shortest, and.yeah, you get the point. He gave the goblin his money and it dumped all of it into a drawer. Then the goblin started counting a mass of gold, silver, and bronze coins and handed a pile over to Yugi. One by one the others did the same. A little while later, weighed down with wizard gold, they exited Gringotts. Malik was studying the coins carefully.  
  
"Hey, how do we use these?" he asked.  
  
"The gold ones are Galleons, the silver ones are Sickles, and the bronze ones are Knuts. Twenty-nine Knuts to a Sickle and seventeen Sickles to a Galleon," said Seto.  
  
"How did you-"  
  
"You didn't read the sign, did you?" Malik shook his head. "That's how," Seto replied, smirking.  
  
Hagrid cleared his throat. "I think that it's best if we all split up, we'll get the supplies faster, an' I need to buy some more flesh-eatin' slug repellent for the school cabbages. Here," he pulled out some pieces of paper and handed it to them, "are some maps of Diagon Alley. Sorry, I've only got two, so that means that you can either split up into two groups or stay together as one." He looked at them. Malik, Ryou, and Yugi were standing together already, and Seto and Mokuba were standing together a good distance away. "Er, okay then. How about we meet back at the Leaky Cauldron in 2 hours?" Nods. "Good! Well, I'll see you in a little while, then!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Let's see, where should we go first?" Malik asked, scanning the map. "Ah hah! Let's go get our books first! We can get them at a place called Flourish and Blotts." Sometime later they stepped into a medium-sized bookshop.  
  
"We need... The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 6 by Mir-" Yugi was cut off as an assistant snatched his booklist out of his hands. He read through it quickly and bustled off.  
  
"Wait! We need three sets!" Ryou called desperately after him.  
  
"Make that six," said a voice right behind them. They whirled around. There were three people standing behind them. A tall boy with red hair and a lot of freckles, a girl with bushy brown hair, and a skinny boy with messy black hair and glasses that framed jet green eyes.  
  
"Sorry if we startled you," said the redhead. He was the one who had spoken earlier. He got a good look at them. "Wow! How did all of you get your hair like that? What spell did you use?"  
  
"It's natural," all three of them replied at the same time. The boy continued to goggle at him.  
  
::Stupid boy::  
  
"Oh, Ron, you're so rude!" the girl had pushed him aside. "Hello, I'm Hermione Granger. This," she jabbed a finger at the redhead, who was still gawking at them, "is Ron Weasley. And this," she indicated the boy on her other side, "is Harry Potter." She had expected them to direct their attention to Harry, as everyone did, but they never did stare at the scar or ask any questions. Instead, they introduced themselves.  
  
"I'm Yugi Motou."  
  
"Ryou Bakura."  
  
"Malik Ishtar."  
  
"It's nice to meet you. I heard about a rumor that Hogwarts was accepting foreign students this year, you must be them, although I did think there were going to be more."  
  
"Oh, there are more. We just split up to buy our supplies. Maybe you can meet them later," Yugi said.  
  
"And you're all from Japan?"  
  
"That's right. But Ryou here is used to England, and Malik is Egyptian," explained Yugi.  
  
"But you haven't gotten any magical education before this?" asked Harry.  
  
"Nope."  
  
"And they're letting you skip to 6th year already?" asked Ron incredulously.  
  
::What, so you think that we're dumb idiots?:: was the indignant response from Yami Bakura.  
  
"Well, Dumbledore said that the teachers would help us catch up," said Yugi. "He thought that it would be better if we were with students the same age as us."  
  
"You're going to have a lot of catching up to do, it's hard enough going at a regular pace. You'll have to go through six years of studying in one year!" Ron said.  
  
::He's officially a moron.::  
  
Just then, the assistant came back, staggering under the weight of 6 sets of books. They rushed to pay for them and walked out together.  
  
"You know what, we still have to get the rest of our stuff, too," said Ron. "Do you want to join us? We can show you all kinds of stuff and tell you about the wizarding world."  
  
"That'd be great!"  
  
::Nooooo...::  
  
:Oh be quiet, Bakura. We can learn a lot of stuff about their kind of magic.:  
  
"I know, you guys can get your wands first! It's always exciting to see. Here, come this way," said Harry, turning left. They stopped outside a narrow and shabby shop. Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. A single wand lay on a faded purple cushion in the dusty window. "It's a bit creepy," Ron told them, as they walked inside. A tinkling bell rang somewhere in the depths of the shop as they stepped inside. It was a tiny place, with a spindly chair in the corner. An old man had just come from the back. His pale eyes slid over the newcomers.  
  
::Dumb old man.::  
  
"Ah, Mr. Potter! How nice to see you again. Holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches, am I not correct? It was one of the more unusual combinations. And Mr. Weasley, willow, unicorn tail-hair, fourteen inches? Putting it to good use? Now, what have we here? You'll be needing wands, am I not correct?" He rubbed his hands together in anticipation.  
  
::Now he's acting weird.::  
  
"I think I'll have you go first," Mr. Ollivander said, pointing at Yugi. He began to measure Yugi, from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit and round his head. As he measured, he said, "Every Ollivander wand has a core of a powerful magical substance. We use unicorn hairs, phoenix tail feathers, and the heartstrings of dragons. No two Ollivander wands are the same, just as no two unicorns, dragons, or phoenixes are quite the same. And of course, you will never get such good results with another wizard's wand. Recently, I've found some old wands in the back of my shop. They contain different magical cores, ones that I've never used before. It must have been my great-great- great-great-grandfather's doing."  
  
Yugi suddenly realized that the tape measure, which was measuring between his nostrils, was doing this on its own. Mr. Ollivander was flitting around the shelves, taking down boxes.  
  
"That will do," he said, and the tape measure crumpled into a heap on the floor. "Right then, Mr. Motou. Try this one. Dogwood and phoenix feather, nine and a half inches, pliable." Yugi took it, looking confused.  
  
"Well, give it a wave," said Mr. Ollivander.  
  
Yugi, feeling very foolish, waved it in the air. Nothing happened. Mr. Ollivander snatched it out of his hands and immediately replaced it with another one.  
  
"Beechwood and unicorn tail hair, nine and a quarter inches-" Yugi had just barely lifted it when Mr. Ollivander grabbed it and gave him another one.  
  
"Rosewood, dragon heartstring, eleven and a half inches, springy." Nothing. He kept on trying, until there was a huge pile of tried wands at his feet. But Mr. Ollivander seemed even happier. He went once more into the depths of the shop.  
  
He came back muttering under his breath. "I wonder... why not? Here's one of those that I just found." He held out a box that looked like it had been sitting in the shop since 382 B.C.  
  
"Cherrywood, 12 inches, with a hair from a sphinx! Go on, try it." As Yugi lifted the wand, he felt a warm power rushing through his body. He lifted the wand up high, and brought it swishing down. Red and gold sparks flew out of the tip, lighting up the whole room. Harry, Ron, and Hermione gave cheers and clapped loudly.  
  
But there was more.  
  
Suddenly the Eye of Horus, the Millennium Symbol, appeared. Each of the seven Millennium Items also came out with a flurry of gold sparks and started circling it. Yami Bakura was forced to take over by some mysterious power. The Eye of Horus also appeared. Malik had one, too. The Millennium Ring went to hover in front of Yami Bakura, the Puzzle went to Yami Yugi, who had also been summoned, and the Millennium Rod flashed at Malik. After a few moments, they vanished.  
  
Yugi, Ryou, and Malik exchanged glances. Nobody else had seemed to notice the strange reaction the wand had caused.  
  
"Well, I'd say that that is the right wand for you, Mr. Motou," said Mr. Ollivander. He carefully wrapped the wand, and placed it back into its box. "Next, please?"  
  
Ryou stepped forward. He, too, tried several wands before he was successful. It was made out of ebony, and had one unicorn tail hair. White and gold sparks flew out of the end and vanished when they hit him. Mr. Ollivander was very pleased.  
  
::That guy is seriously whacked.::  
  
Malik was next. He ended up with a wand made out of papyrus reed, containing a griffin's hair. They paid seven galleons each and exited the shop.  
  
"Wow!" Ron exclaimed. "That was cool, getting to see people try out wands again. I still remember when I got my own wand. I'll never forget it, nearly burned his hair off with the wrong one!"  
  
Hermione, though, was asking Ryou where they were going to stay, since it would be too much of a hassle to go back to Japan.  
  
"Actually, were going to be staying at a wizarding inn. I think it's in a place called the Leaky Cauldron."  
  
"Hey, that's where we're staying, too." Harry said. "We can go to King's Cross together!"  
  
What he didn't mention was that he was only staying there because he had refused to stay at Grimmauld Place, the Headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix. It was just too painful to stay there at his godfather's house without Sirius there. He had met up with his friends after just a few weeks, and they had been staying at the Leaky Cauldron since then.  
  
"We can go visit Fred and George now! They're my brothers," Ron explained to Yugi, Ryou, and Malik. "They started a joke shop not too long ago. It's called Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. We can get your stuff later. After all, we have the rest of the month to do it. And I need to stock up on Skiving Snackboxes."  
  
::What in the world are those?::  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
When they returned to the Leaky Cauldron two hours later, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were pleasantly surprised to see Hagrid. They seemed to know him very well and were friends of his.  
  
They dropped all of their shopping bags into vacant chairs and collapsed down into the chairs at Hagrid's table. For some odd reason Ryou had been delighted with the joke shop. This was puzzling because they had talked for quite some time while shopping for the rest of their supplies, and he seemed like the type of person who liked books, like Hermione. But when they had entered Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, Ryou and Malik had been fascinated with all of the things that had strange or nasty effects.  
  
"Where're Seto and Mokuba?" Yugi asked. His yami had brought it up, and now that he thought about it, they hadn't seen either one of them since they split up quite a while ago.  
  
"Came half an hour ago," Hagrid replied. "Said that he wanted to spend the rest of the month back in Japan, something to do with his company. You should have seen all the books that they bought. Nearly the whole bookshop!" He chuckled, then looked at his pocket watch. "Blimey, look at the time! I'd better get going now. Dumbledore wants me to report on how everything's going. I guess I'll see you all at Hogwarts, so take care until then!"  
  
He took his cans of flesh eating slug repellent and strode out of the shop. The light was momentarily blocked by his huge form in the doorway, and then he was gone.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Once again, sorry about the descriptions from the book of Diagon Alley. If you have any comments or suggestions, please tell me in your review! Now, on to editing the next chapter!  
  
Thank you, t.a.g.0! There were some very helpful comments that you put in for this chapter. 


	4. The Hogwarts Express and Sorting Ceremon...

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.  
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Their stay at the Leaky Cauldron for the rest of the month was pleasant. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley greeted Yugi, Ryou, and Malik warmly (Mr. Weasley immediately started questioning them about Muggle appliances). They also met Ginny, Ron's younger sister. Harry, Ron, and Hermione told them all about their previous years at Hogwarts and their encounters with Lord Voldemort. They also filled them in on the magical world. Luckily, they didn't notice too much whenever a yami took over, which, surprisingly, wasn't that much at all.  
  
They usually appeared in spirit form outside of their rooms, and only came out when they were alone.  
  
Ryou had gotten a kitten. It was an early birthday present from Yami Bakura and himself. She was pure white with crystal blue eyes. He called her Sanura. "It means kitten in Egyptian," Ryou had explained. They had decided to get an owl to share, as they probably wouldn't be writing that many letters. It was a dark, almost black, tawny owl, and they named her Keket, which was Egyptian for 'Goddess of Darkness'.  
  
Every day they strolled along Diagon Alley, until they could memorize all of the shops. Finally, September 1st arrived.  
  
"How're we going to get to King's Cross, Dad?" Ron asked during breakfast.  
  
Mr. Weasley looked uncomfortable. "Ah, well, I'm not really sure," he admitted. "Dumbledore mentioned something about notifying me today, but I haven't gotten the message yet." They stared at him in disbelief.  
  
::Now he tells us:: Yami Bakura snorted from his soul room. ::What're we going to do now?:: Then, quite suddenly, a roll of parchment appeared out of thin air, along with a few blue sparks and a single blue feather, and fell onto the toast.  
  
"I think that's what Dumbledore told me about," Mr. Weasley said, sounding relieved. He picked it up. "I believe it's addressed to you, Yugi."  
  
Yugi took the parchment, and looked at it. There, on the front, was his name, written in neat handwriting that he didn't recognize. He read:  
  
Yugi,  
  
I have arranged for someone to pick you and your  
friends up. It will take you to King's Cross Station.  
Go outside, your ride should be waiting for you right  
now. I'll see you on the Hogwarts Express.  
  
Seto Kaiba  
  
"Seto's arranged for someone to take us to King's Cross, and it's waiting outside right now," he informed them. They all scrambled upstairs to get their suitcases and met at the entrance.  
  
"You know, I don't think that one car is going to fit nine people, seven trunks, and five animals," said Hermione, once they had all come down. They stepped outside. And saw a black Kaiba Corp. limo waiting. "But then again..."  
  
"Wow, is this Kaiba guy rich?" Ron asked.  
  
"That just about sums him up," said Malik. "Anyway, come on! We're going to be late if you continue to stand there." Once they got inside, it was evident that someone had magically expanded the car's interior.  
  
"Yes! No Kaiba breathing down our necks. Want a drink, Yugi?" Malik had already begun to fix himself something from the snack bar.  
  
They were just settling in to enjoy the luxury of the limo when they got to King's Cross. Mr. Weasley had been fascinated with all of the technology on the limo, although it wasn't one of Seto's best models. The chauffeur helped them put their luggage onto trolleys, and then departed. Ryou looked at his ticket for the first time.  
  
"Wait a second, this ticket says to go to platform nine and three quarters! There's no such thing, is there?"  
  
Harry grinned. "That's the secret."  
  
They had now arrived at the junction between platforms nine and ten.  
  
"Okay, here's what you do. Walk straight towards that barrier, and keep on going, no matter what. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous," Ron told Ryou.  
  
Ryou looked like he didn't even want to try. Malik rolled his eyes.  
  
"Here, I'll go first," he said. He walked casually towards the barrier, and disappeared.  
  
Ron turned to Yugi. "Has he done that before? He seemed really sure of himself."  
  
"That's Malik for you."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Five minutes later they were all standing in a circle around Mr. Weasley. A scarlet train engine was bellowing steam behind them.  
  
"Now, always keep an eye out for danger," Mr. Weasley warned. "This year's going to be a difficult one. Contact members of the Order immediately if you suspect something." He raised his voice, so that the people around them could hear. "I'll see you all during the holidays. Have a good term!"  
  
Mrs. Weasley hugged and kissed them all, and they dragged their heavy trunks onto the train, looking for an empty compartment. They opened a compartment door near the end of the train to find-  
  
"Seto?" Seto Kaiba was typing away on his laptop, with Mokuba sitting next to him.  
  
"Hi, Yugi!" the little boy chirped. He bounced over to where they were standing.  
  
"Can we sit here?" Yugi asked. "Everywhere else is full."  
  
"Sure! Come in!"  
  
Once they had all gotten seated, Mokuba asked curiously, "Who are they, Yugi?"  
  
"Oh, sorry, I'm Hermione Granger." Blue eyes looked up from the screen.  
  
"Ron Weasley."  
  
"Ginny Weasley."  
  
"Harry Potter." At this, Kaiba raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Harry Potter, you've conquered Voldemort, helped resurrect him, and fought him four times, am I not correct?"  
  
"Uh, yeah. How did you know all of that?" he asked. Only a few people knew about his records with Lord Voldemort.  
  
"I have my sources," Kaiba replied.  
  
"Big brother, you didn't even introduce yourself!" the eleven year old said. "I'm Mokuba, by the way." He nudged his brother.  
  
"Seto Kaiba," said Kaiba. Then there was a strange glow on his shoulder, and with a flurry of blue and silver sparks, a beautiful blue phoenix appeared, crooning in his ear. Every shade of blue was on it, from the deepest indigo to a light shade of cerulean. It had a few gold and silver streaks in her feathers. "Oh, and this is Nefertari," he added, allowing himself a slight smile. "I almost forgot about her. She disappeared right before you came in."  
  
"She's the one who sent that letter this morning!" Yugi realized. He remembered the single blue feather that had accompanied the roll of parchment that morning. Kaiba nodded, stroking her head affectionately. Yugi noticed that he had loosened up a little bit when Nefertari appeared. He seemed more relaxed than usual.  
  
"Wow, where did you get a phoenix?" Harry asked. "A blue one, too! I've never seen one with that kind of plumage."  
  
"Actually, I don't really know. She just turned up when we got back from Diagon Alley. My theory is that the phoenix feather that's in my wand is hers, and for some reason, she came to the owner. But that would mean that she's waited for nearly a thousand years. And a dragon should have come, too, because I also have a dragon heartstring in my wand. By the way Mr. Ollivander described it, I think it was something like the Blue Eyes White Dragon!"  
  
"And that's your favorite card, isn't it?" Hermione asked. "You're in the news a couple of times a month, & your company is on the top of the charts. You've received awards for your holographic technology and other products, and you're the number one duelist in the world with Yugi." Seto was looking at her with a strange expression on his face.  
  
"Yeah, I think I remember my cousin reading a magazine with you in it. You had dueled Yugi Motou again and tied with him twice, making the two of you tied for first place. And my uncle's mentioned you a few times, too," Harry added.  
  
"Yup, that's Seto," Mokuba said proudly. "But I haven't been able to get him to stop working lately."  
  
"You know your laptop won't work near Hogwarts, right, Seto?" Hermione asked.  
  
He answered her in his normal tone. "In normal circumstances, yes, but I don't think this one's going to stop working anytime this year." Hermione frowned.  
  
"And what makes you think that?" she asked.  
  
"I have my reasons," he replied.  
  
"I'll bet ten galleons that it'll break down once we arrive at Hogwarts," Harry said. Of course it was going to stop working, Hogwarts had too much magic around it. Electronic muggle devices simply didn't work.  
  
Kaiba shrugged. "Fine." He didn't look worried at all.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Since Hermione and Ron were sixth year prefects, they weren't required to patrol the corridors again. They started chatting, preparing to enjoy the long ride in the company of their new friends. Sanura had fallen asleep on Ryou's lap, Crookshanks was dozing in his wickerwork basket, and the owl cages had been covered. Then, about an hour into the ride, Nefertari stiffened, and disappeared, leaving a few sparkles in the air.  
  
"Someone's coming," said Kaiba.  
  
Sure enough, a moment later, the compartment door slid open.  
  
You guessed it-it was Draco Malfoy. But for once, he didn't have his cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle with him. He looked slightly disconcerted and didn't seem to realize that they were there at all.  
  
I glanced at all of them and said carelessly, "Oh, hey Harry, Ron, Hermione." Then he slid the compartment door shut quietly and then they heard fading footsteps striding down the corridor.  
  
"That was...strange..." Harry said. Ron's mouth was hanging open.  
  
"Who was that?" asked Ryou.  
  
"Draco Malfoy," said Ron, once he had gained the power of speech back. "He's in Slytherin. Seeker for their Quidditch team. Why was he acting like that? He's usually a big prick. And where were Crabbe and Goyle?"  
  
"There must have been some reason for him to look so unnerved. He looked like he was thinking about something before he came into our compartment," said Hermione.  
  
"What's Quidditch?" Yugi interrupted. "It sounds like a game."  
  
"Oh, it is! It's the best sport ever!"  
  
/Hey, Yami! Come on out and listen too!/  
  
And Ron was off, explaining what Quidditch was, how to play, the House teams, rules, and tactics...  
  
The lady with the food cart came later. "Anything off the trolley, dears?" she asked. Harry and Mokuba went to get the food. They came back with armloads of Pumpkin Pasties, Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands, and a number of strange things that Yugi'd seen in his life.  
  
The rest of the train ride was uneventful. Almost all of the food had gone. Mokuba had eaten too much sugar, had bounced off the walls for a few hours, and then fallen asleep.  
  
Seto had abandoned his laptop at his brother's pleading and was now talking with Hermione about the classes at Hogwarts, and the books that they would be using this year. She seemed very pleased that someone else had read Hogwarts, A History. Ron overheard a bit of their conversation.  
  
"What!? You can't just read Hogwarts, a History, in four hours! That book's about a thousand pages long!" he exclaimed loudly. Nefertari quivered and disappeared, leaving behind a few blue sparkles in the air.  
  
Kaiba glared at him. "Your point?" he asked. Ron was unable to answer. Nefertari appeared later, and Kaiba returned to his relaxed state. A few hours later, a voice rang out throughout the train.  
  
"We will be arriving at Hogsmeade station shortly. Please get ready to leave. Your luggage will be brought up to the castle separately." They woke up Mokuba, all pulled on their black robes and left the train.  
  
Harry smiled as he heard a familiar voice calling, "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Firs' years over here, please!"  
  
Mokuba was comforted by Seto and with a pat on the head, got mixed in with the crowd of first years around Hagrid. Seto had sent Nefertari along to protect him from potential danger. She was invisible, and looking very closely, all they could see were a few blue sparkles in the air.  
  
They headed for the carriages that took all of the other students to Hogwarts.  
  
"Are those thestrals?" Seto suddenly asked. He had frozen and was staring at a spot right in front of the carriage. Yugi looked, too, but he couldn't see anything.  
  
"Yeah, can you see them?" Harry asked. He only knew a few people who could see the leathery, dragon-like horse creatures.  
  
Kaiba only had time to nod once, and then they rushed to get a carriage to themselves. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but somehow Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Kaiba, Harry, Ron, and Hermione all managed to fit in one carriage. Sanura, Keket, Hedwig, Crookshanks, and Pig were going to be brought up to the castle with their other stuff.  
  
It was only when the carriage started moving that someone finally spoke up.  
  
"What were those creatures? You said thestrals, right?" Malik asked.  
  
::Ryou, let me take over.:: Only Malik, Yugi, and Seto noticed the slight change in Ryou.  
  
"Hey! What're you doing?!?!" yelped Ron in surprise, as Yami Bakura leaned out the window to peer at the place where horses would have been.  
  
"Hmm, I can see them, too," he said quietly, sitting back down.  
  
"Well, obviously. You must have killed about a dozen people in the past," remarked Seto sarcastically.  
  
"Actually, multiply that by fifteen and you'll get a little closer," Malik told him.  
  
"It's not like you haven't killed anybody in your lifetime," Yami Bakura retorted.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione chose to ignore these unnerving statements.  
  
"Anyway, only people who've seen death can see them. There's a whole flock in the Forbidden Forest," said Harry.  
  
"Forbidden Forest?" It seemed like Malik had forgotten the thestrals. "Wait, don't tell me...it's a place that's forbidden, right?" He had a kind of mischievous gleam in his eyes. Yugi, Ryou, and Seto groaned.  
  
"Don't even think about it," Seto growled. "You're going to give us a bad reputation."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto were asked to see Professor Dumbledore the instant they stepped in the huge Entrance Hall. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went on into the Great Hall without them, passing a group a terrified looking first years. They waved at Mokuba, who waved back. Unlike the other first years, he didn't look scared at all, but happy and cheerful.  
  
"Must have been all the sugar," whispered Ron.  
  
They took their places at the Gryffindor table, Ron looking at the golden plates with longing. Harry noticed that the seat where the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher usually sat was empty. Soon, Professor McGonagall carried in a battered looking hat and a stool. The first years filed in after her, gazing in awe at the bewitched ceiling, which currently showed a clear night sky, with stars twinkling everywhere and a yellow full moon.  
  
Everyone fell silent as she placed the hat on the stool. A wide rip near the brim opened, and the hat broke into song. It was traditional each year for the hat to open the Sorting Ceremony with a new song.  
  
Harry was only half listening. His mind was wandering somewhere else. Why had the new foreign students been accepted this year? Did it have something to do with Voldemort? He was brought back to reality when Hermione poked him and whispered, "There's Mokuba!"  
  
Indeed, Mokuba had stepped up and pulled the hat on. Many of the muggle- borns had recognized his last name and were whispering to each other. The hat covered his eyes completely and would have covered his whole head if it weren't for his bushy hair. They waited a whole minute before the hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table erupted with cheers and clapping. Professor McGonagall pulled the hat off his head and he ran to sit with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. They congratulated him and settled back to watch the rest of the Sorting.  
  
Soon after the last first year, "Young, Jessica," was sorted, the doors leading to the Entrance Hall opened. Dumbledore strode over to the teacher's table and was followed by Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Kaiba. Whispers followed them all the way up to the front of the Great Hall.  
  
"I am very pleased to announce, that this year, we'll be accepting four exchange students. Please treat them as you would anyone else. Now, they will be sorted into houses."  
  
Professor McGonagall stepped forward again, reading from the top of a shorter list. "Bakura, Ryou."  
  
"Look at that guy!" Whispered conversations followed them all the way up the aisles.  
  
"Yeah, like, he has, like, white hair!"  
  
"But he looks like he's the same age as us..."  
  
"And he's pretty cute, too," a girl whispered to her friend.  
  
::Idiots, I'll kill them all. Nobody can take my Ryou. Let me out, Ryou!::  
  
:No.: was the firm reply. :And try not to mess this up too much.:  
  
Ryou walked up to the stool and put the hat on. He was startled to hear another voice in his head.  
  
"Hmm, now this is strange," the hat said. "There are two souls in this mind. Each is very different from the other. One is submissive but courageous, and the other is shrewd and the dominant one. Now, where to put you..." The hat was on for a good five minutes, and the rest of the students were watching with baited breath.  
  
Finally, it shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" And Ryou hurried to the Gryffindor table. The girls only stayed away from him because his yami had momentarily taken over and was glaring at them.  
  
Malik went next.  
  
"That guy has, like, weird hair too!"  
  
"Yah, but look at his tan! He's really hot!"  
  
"Look at his eyes! Aren't they strange?"  
  
"And he looks so....exotic!"  
  
"SLYTHERIN!" came the hat's decision.  
  
Yugi and Ryou groaned. Malik didn't want to be in Slytherin. He was probably going to do something drastic.  
  
"You can't put me in Slytherin!" Malik shouted at the hat. He had ripped it off his head and thrown it too the floor. The students were watching interestedly. Nobody had ever denied the hat's decisions. "I'll send you to the Shadow Realm if you don't put me with the Tomb Robber! And then I'll get my Yami to destroy you forever!" He shoved his hand into the pocket of his cargo pants, where they knew his Millennium Rod was hidden.  
  
"Uh oh," said Yugi.  
  
"Double uh oh," added Seto.  
  
"That'll be quite enough, young man!" Professor McGonagall said, her spectacles flashing. "The hat chose to place you in Slytherin, and that will be your House! Now go to the Slytherin table and let the others get sorted!" Malik scowled at her, looking like he didn't want to listen.  
  
Yami Bakura, who had taken over again, started laughing. Now everyone's attention was focused on him. He didn't seem to care. "Malik, listen to what the nice teacher says!" he said in a mock babyish voice. Malik threw him a look that clearly said, 'Traitor' and reluctantly walked over to the Slytherin table and seated himself away from all the other Slytherins.  
  
This time the girls stayed far away. It didn't matter how hot he was-that guy was someone to stay away from.  
  
Yami Bakura had let Ryou take control again. "Okay, what'd he do this time?" he asked Mokuba.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were listening, looking very confused. Mokuba noticed them, and just said, "Nothing too bad, don't worry."  
  
When Seto's name was called, the whisperings started again. Many of the girls were looking at him dreamily.  
  
"Seto Kaiba? Why is he here?" asked Dean Thomas.  
  
"Why, d'you know him?" asked Seamus, totally oblivious to how popular Seto was. Some of the girls in Gryffindor that had heard him gasped in indignation.  
  
"Of course! Nearly everyone in the muggle world does! He's not even 16, and he's already the CEO of his own company and a multibillionaire, not to mention something like the world's most eligible bachelor."  
  
One of the Ravenclaw girls that had heard Dean said, "Yah, he's like, so hot!"  
  
Her friend said, "I love his eyes!"  
  
Another girl said, "No, the way his hair falls makes him so cute!"  
  
"And his clothes are, like, so awesome!"  
  
"I just think he's really cool!"  
  
Dean turned back to Seamus. "See?"  
  
Meanwhile, in Seto's head, the hat was talking to him and thoroughly annoying him.  
  
"One of those intellectuals, are you? You have a lot of potential... And wait, there's also courage in here, a lot of courage. Yes, you had to go through a lot, didn't you? Let's see, mother died, father died, got sent to an orphanage, adopted by a cruel man, trained for inheriting the company... And you're still always there for your little brother. Well, then you'd better be in GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Let's just say that there were many disappointed fans and a lot of happy ones from Gryffindor. Most of the girls tried to get closer to Seto, but was sitting between Ryou and Mokuba, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione right in front of him.  
  
"Motou, Yugi!" There were hushed "wow!"s from the people who had heard of Yugi.  
  
"Okay, these new peoples have, like, weird hair," said the same person who had commented on Ryou and Malik. "This one's, like, the weirdest."  
  
"He's cute, too!" squealed the same girl.  
  
Yugi couldn't even get the hat on his head. There were a lot of sniggers from the students as he struggled to pull it on properly. In the end, the hat just grew larger to fit all of his hair.  
  
"Aha! It's another one! Two minds sharing a vessel, and yet both very different. One is innocent, with a lot of bravery, while the other is dark, mysterious, but equally courageous. I think that it'd better be GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Yugi, relieved, sat himself down next to Ryou. The Gryffindor table once again broke into applause.  
  
The headmaster stood up.  
  
"There are a few start-of-term notices that I would give we eat. First years and new students should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. I have also been reminded by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to tell you that the list of items not allowed inside the castle has grown to four hundred and fifty-three. They can, as always, be viewed in Mr. Filch's office.  
  
"Quidditch trials will be held in November, due to special circumstances."  
  
There were indignant (and violent) reactions from all students at this.  
  
Dumbledore went on:  
  
"Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. Our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be arriving tomorrow, he's having some difficulties getting here."  
  
Nobody noticed his brief glance up at the enchanted ceiling. A second later, he was looking over the students waiting expectantly.  
  
"And now, let the feast begin!" Dumbledore said, and with a wave of his arms, the golden plates became laden with all kinds of foods. They dug in. (Okay, so Seto didn't, so what?)  
  
During the middle of the meal, the ghosts made their appearance. Surprisingly, Yami Bakura had become acquainted with the Bloody Baron. Let's just say that their interests were sort of the same.  
  
Afterwards, filled up with all kinds of food, they went up several staircases and stopped in front of the Fat Lady. Yugi and Ryou were a bit freaked out at first by the moving paintings. The password was, to their surprise, 'Dark Magician.' They trudged up to the boys' dormitory, which now had two circular rooms, a small one with Dean, Seamus, and Neville, and a bigger one with Harry, Ron, Yugi, Ryou, and Seto. There was a door separating the two rooms and it was already closed. Their guess was that the other three had taken the other staircase and were already asleep.  
  
Keket was in the owlery, Sanura was already asleep on Ryou's bed, and their luggage had been brought up already.  
  
Everything seemed perfect.  
  
/You know, this might not be so bad after all./ Yugi decided, as he climbed into bed. /Goodnight, Yami./ He closed his eyes.  
  
The spirit-unbeknownst to Yugi-was sitting on the bed, looking at Yugi's face. The moonlight shining through his transparent form onto the other made him seem perfectly angelic. The bed showed no indication that a second person was sitting there. It was as if he was weightless.  
  
//Goodnight, aibou.// He reached out to brush a bang out of Yugi's eyes. The hand was transparent as well.  
  
Yugi smiled in his sleep. A hand, solid this time, reached out and closed the hangings around the bed, and the spirit vanished.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
I added a bit more at the end-did you like it better than the previous version?  
  
I also need your opinion on Sanura and Keket. I don't think that they're going to be playing that big of a role in this. And I'll just forget to add them into each chapter. Should I take the kitty and the owl out? Please tell me!  
  
I am now starting to worship t.a.g.0! She's given me so many great suggestions! 


	5. First Experiences

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.  
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Harry awoke quite suddenly the next morning. Ron was still asleep. Yugi and Ryou were sitting on their beds, fully dressed and talking to each other in whispered voices. But Seto's bed was empty.  
  
Ryou noticed that he was awake and said, cheerfully, "Good morning, Harry. I hope you slept well. Yugi and I were waiting for one of you to wake up so that we could go to breakfast together."  
  
"Where's Seto?" Harry asked.  
  
"I don't really know. Oh, and he might not want you to be calling him that," he added.  
  
Harry dressed quickly and the three of them went down to the common room together. Seto was already there. He was typing on his laptop, his fingers flying over the keys. Nefertari was at his shoulder, looking at them with intelligent eyes.  
  
"Oh, hello, Harry," Seto said without looking up. "I do believe you owe me 10 galleons. Good morning, Yugi, and Happy Birthday Bakura."  
  
Their reactions were all different.  
  
"How did you know that it's my birthday?" Ryou asked curiously.  
  
/Hey Yami! Seto actually said good morning!/  
  
//Well, I'm not really surprised. He's been changing a lot lately.//  
  
Harry just gaped at Seto. Was his laptop even working? And if it was, how? He walked over to where he was sitting and stared at the screen. It appeared to be operating normally, and the screen was filled with complex graphs and charts.  
  
Just then, Hermione came down from the stairs to the girls' dormitories and Ron stumbled down from the boys' dormitories. They caught sight of Seto's laptop and walked over, too, amazed that it was working.  
  
"Wow! How did you get it to work?" Ron asked, staring at the screen.  
  
"I'll tell you when I'm ready," he replied. Mokuba came down, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.  
  
"Hi, big brother!" He hugged his brother awkwardly around the middle. Then he yawned a 76 second yawn. He was suddenly awake. "Hey everybody!"  
  
Then Mokuba spotted the laptop. "Oh no, Seto, have you been working all morning again? I thought I told you not to!" he said. Harry had to bite back a laugh. Seto Kaiba, a teenager who could make most people shake in fear with one glare, was being told off by his little brother!  
  
Mokuba shut the laptop with a voice command and rounded on Seto. "You're going to breakfast! And no laptop until you eat a proper meal!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
They walked into the Great Hall to many stares. The girls drooled over Seto as he walked confidently past. He even looked good in the standard Hogwarts robes. Other muggle-borns were trying to get a closer look at Yugi and Seto.  
  
Seating themselves at the Gryffindor table, they started helping themselves to breakfast. Seto just poured himself a cup of coffee. Pretty soon Malik came, and sat down at their table next to Ryou as if it was where he belonged.  
  
"I'm not sure if you can do that," Hermione said. "You're supposed to eat with your house members, and get to know them better."  
  
"I already know plenty about them," he replied coolly. "They're all stupid- "  
  
He was interrupted by the sound of rushing wings. "Ah, the mail's here!" said Ron.  
  
"What the hell?!?!" Malik exclaimed. Owls had begun to zoom in, dropping letters and packages into people's laps. A few of the more inexperienced owls accidentally dropped the parcels into their owner's food. A lot more owls were in the Great Hall, more that usual, it seemed. All of the sixth years were receiving one with the Hogwarts seal on the back.  
  
Hermione read hers quickly and then burst out, "I don't believe it!"  
  
"What?" asked Harry, opening his own.  
  
"Yeah, what's up, Hermione?" Ron asked.  
  
"We're going to have to take O.W.L.s again!" she exclaimed loudly. "That foul Umbridge woman lost our records, and someone evidently destroyed our files in the Ministry of Magic. And I worked really hard last year, too..." she moaned.  
  
"So that's why we didn't get our results this summer!" Dean Thomas said.  
  
"No way!" Ron, who had forgotten the fork that was halfway up to his mouth, managed to choke out. "Not the O.W.L.s ! It was torture last time! I just barely got through last years!"  
  
Harry also remembered the O.W.L.s only too well. It was exhausting, and he doubted it he even passed all of them. He had been focused on Voldemort too much during that time... And speaking of Voldemort....what was he planning right now? He supposed that Dumbledore wanted the students to have an ordinary year and pretend that nothing had happened. Panic would only make Voldemort's job all the easier.  
  
"Hey, look! Yugi, Bakura, Malik, and Seto've also got letters from Dumbledore!"  
  
Harry snapped back to reality.  
  
"Wha'?" he asked.  
  
Yugi read his letter. "It says that we can take the O.W.L.s too, if we want. It's in two months, we're going to take it again with you guys, so we'll have plenty of time to prepare. We're going to take the normal classes until we get our results. Then we can see which O.W.L. classes we got into and drop the other classes."  
  
"Wait a minute," Malik interrupted. "What are O.W.L.s?"  
  
"They're a kind of wizarding test that you have to take in your 5th year," Hermione explained. "They're really tiring, and there's a practical exam and a written exam for each class."  
  
"And what classes are we in?" Malik asked with a raised eyebrow. Hermione was stumped.  
  
"Didn't Dumbledore tell you anything about your classes?" she asked. "Well, you'll see once you get your schedule. Oh, here they come now." She passed a sheet of paper over to Malik. "Yours actually got delivered to the Gryffindor table. I wonder why..."  
  
The others got their schedules relatively quickly and they compared them with each other.  
  
"Hey, look! Malik's in all of our classes!" Yugi exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose Dumbledore wanted him to stay with people he knew," Harry told him.  
  
"And Seto's got Arithmancy with Hermione, look," Ron pointed out. "That class is supposed to be really hard, good luck with you on that one." He peered at Ryou's schedule more carefully. "Wow! Harry, come see this! Yugi, Bakura, Malik, AND Seto're in the Ancient Runes class."  
  
But Harry was focused on something else. "Divination?!?!" he asked with astonishment. "We've still got Divination?!?!" Professor Trelawney, the Divination professor, was his least favorite teacher, along with Snape, the head of Slytherin house and Potions Master.  
  
"We all have it," Ryou said. "It can't be that bad, can it?"  
  
"Oh, yes it can," promised Ron darkly.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
On the way to Defense Against the Dark Arts, their first class, the topic of the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher popped up.  
  
"I wonder who our teacher is going to be this year," Hermione said thoughtfully.  
  
"Even less people want the job now," Ron said. "Let's see, one dead, one's memory gone, one who resigned-mind you, he was a really good teacher-but they'll think he was afraid of the job or something...one locked in his own trunk for the whole year, and one who got attacked by centaurs. Yup, I think that Dumbledore had a pretty hard time getting a new-"  
  
They had just walked into the classroom, and standing at the front, removing some papers from a battered old briefcase, was...  
  
"Lupin?!?!" Harry stood there with his mouth open, staring at Remus Lupin. He looked even more tired than usual, with more gray hairs and lines on his face, but was smiling at him.  
  
"Why hello there, Harry," he said pleasantly. "How has your summer been?"  
  
"Are you our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher this year?" Harry asked incredulously.  
  
"Yes, Professor Dumbledore needed somebody for the job, and seeing that you have a lot to catch up on, I volunteered. And are you the newcomers?" He studied Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto carefully. "Please sit down, so we can begin class."  
  
He started passing out papers. "Now, I have put together a kind of review, to see what you've learned so far, and to tell me what you need to know. As for the new students, you won't have to worry if you don't know much, you're not expected to. Just try to answer as many questions as you can. I'm sorry, I know it's really boring, but I think all of the teachers have compiled something like this." There were groans from the class. Lupin just gave them an apologetic look. "Alright, you have the whole class period, please start...now!"  
  
Harry, who was seated next to Ron, looked over at Hermione, a seat in front of him. She had already begun to write very fast, hunched over her paper. Yugi, sitting next to her, looked at the questions in confusion.  
  
Malik and Ryou, to their right, were trying to use the quills properly, failing miserably. They already had enormous blotches on their parchment and were cursing at the quills in some foreign language. This seemed very uncharacteristic of Ryou, but Harry brushed it from his mind. He turned back to his own test and looked at the first question.  
  
What is a boggart, and how do you get rid of one?  
  
Harry grinned, he remembered how Neville had defeated a boggart back in their third year. He took his quill, dipped it in some ink, and began to write.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sometime later, he reached a question he didn't know the answer to.  
  
a) What is the incantation to a Deplacement Spell, and b) what does it do?  
  
Harry had never heard of a Deplacement Spell, much less know the incantation for it. He glanced over at Seto, and got a big shock. He was sitting back in his chair, looking relaxed for the first time. His papers where stacked in a neat pile at the edge of his desk, and Harry could see neat handwriting answering all of the questions.  
  
Was he done already? This fast? They had been working on the review for barely twenty minutes! He looked at Hermione, and saw that she was only on her third sheet of parchment. She still had three more to go! Shaking his head, he turned back to his test. He was on the second page, and decided to skip the question about the Deplacement Spell.  
  
Ten minutes later, he heard the unmistakable sound of a cell phone ringing. But that was impossible at Hogwarts! Yet, it was true. Students were turning around to see where it was coming from, and even Lupin looked confused. Seto stood up, excused himself from the class, and strode into the hall, accidentally leaving the door open.  
  
"Kaiba," he answered, using his business voice. There was a few moment's pause. "What do you mean, 'it crashed'?!?!" More silence. "No, you listen to me. If you don't get it up and running by tomorrow, I'll personally fly back to Japan and deal with you and the rest of the department, understand? Good, I expect it to be ready by tomorrow." There was a click as Seto shut the cell phone. Then they heard a small sigh. He returned to the room, glaring at everybody who looked at him. He sat back down, and returned to doing nothing.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Twenty minutes later, they were walking down the corridor to Transfiguration. There were a whole lot of people staring again, but the four new students ignored them with a lot of skill. They were talking as if nobody was there.  
  
"Did'you actually finish in twenty minutes? And what was that fellytone call for?" demanded Ron.  
  
"Yeah, why?" asked Seto, looking indifferent, completely ignoring the second question.  
  
"Wow, you finished that quickly?" Hermione asked, amazed. "I didn't know some of the answers, I hope it won't count as anything!"  
  
"Of course it won't," said Yugi reassuringly. "When they give you something like that, they never keep it as a permanent record, they just want to see how much you know."  
  
"I couldn't get the stupid Ra-damned quill to work," Malik said furiously. "It kept on making these huge blotches on my paper!"  
  
"Same here," commented Yami Bakura dryly. "Of course, I could've just let my aibou do it, but making it seem as if he doesn't know anything is so much better." He grinned.  
  
"What?" Harry asked quickly. What was an 'aibou'?  
  
"Nothing," Malik quickly said, cupping his hand over Yami Bakura's mouth. Harry frowned. There was obviously something that they were keeping from him, but then again, it probably wasn't any of his business. Then he noticed that Yugi had been really quiet for the past few minutes. His eyes had a glazed look to them, and he was walking as if on autopilot.  
  
"Um, hello? Earth to Yugi?" he asked him, waving his hand in front of Yugi's face. He didn't show the slightest sign that he had heard him.  
  
"Pharoah's hikari, wake up!" Malik sang. The change was instantaneous. Yugi's eyes suddenly cleared up, and turned a slight shade of...crimson? And they became more narrowed, as he glared at Malik and Yami Bakura.  
  
"Have a nice make out session in the soul room, Pharoah?" Yami Bakura asked lazily.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione weren't getting anything in this new conversation.  
  
"Shut up, baka Tomb Robber," Yami replied sharply. "You're giving too much away."  
  
"Hmm? Oh. Oops."  
  
Ryou stood blinking in the middle of the hall.  
  
"Did he shut you off from the conversation?" Malik asked. "Is that why you look so clueless?"  
  
Ryou just nodded, and then asked politely, "Where are we going? Is Defense Against the Dark Arts over already?"  
  
At this point, please insert five anime sweatdrops, one each for Yami, Malik, Harry, Ron, and Hermione.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were still confused. What in the world was Ryou talking about? He had just gone to Defense Against the Dark Arts with them. Why had he forgotten already?  
  
'He must have a really REALLY short term memory,' Ron concluded, thinking to himself.  
  
"Why couldn't you just ask him?" Malik asked Ryou. Harry thought that he meant Yugi, but that was apparently not what Malik had meant when Ryou replied.  
  
"He's asleep," he said promptly. "So, what time is it?"  
  
"Don't worry, it's still morning, and we're going to Transfiguration," Yami told him.  
  
"Oh. What did we do in Defense Against the Dark Arts?"  
  
"Nothing much, we just took a pretest," Malik shrugged.  
  
"What?!?! What'd he do? What if I got all of the answers wrong?!?! What if-" his eyes had glazed over, as Yugi's had. A faint pink tinge appeared on his cheeks.  
  
By now, the corridor was almost empty. Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided to keep their distance for the time being. These new students were starting to act just a little weird. They seemed fine when they were staying at the Leaky Cauldron, but then again, they hadn't really seen them that much after the first week or so. The three foreigners had just stayed in their rooms.  
  
And where had Seto gone? One minute he was walking beside them, and the next, he had disappeared.  
  
"They're definitely mental," Ron said to Harry and Hermione as they entered the Transfiguration classroom.  
  
Professor McGonagall was waiting for them, and Seto was sitting in a seat near the middle.  
  
'How had he gotten here so fast?' Harry wondered, as he took a seat beside him.  
  
"Okay, I have a pretest for you, to see what you have learned, and what you have forgotten. Since you have to take the O.W.L.s again this year, I suggest you prepare even harder, as you have experienced how exhausting it can be. Half of today's class will be spent on the review, and the other will be a practical lesson." Professor McGonagall was a strict as ever, and as she started handing out the reviews, Harry caught sight of some of the questions. They were in the same format as Lupin's, and he thought that he could answer most of them.  
  
"You may begin...now," Professor McGonagall told them, and then returned to her seat.  
  
The first question was:  
  
Name the theory of a Switching Spell, and the how to cast one.  
  
Once again, quills began scratching.  
  
Harry was only through with half of his test when he heard the quiet shuffling of papers, and saw Seto put his quill back into his inkbottle. When he glanced at the top sheet of parchment, he saw the same, neat handwriting filling the whole page. Once again, Seto had finished before everybody else. He looked up, and saw Professor McGonagall surveying Seto with approval. Seto just sat there, looking nonplussed, resting his chin on his hand and looking bored.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, Professor McGonagall collected their sheets and began lecturing them on transfiguring furniture and other objects into other things.  
  
By the end of class, they had all been assigned ten inches on transfiguring stationary objects.  
  
"Can you believe her?" asked Ron as they walked up to North Tower with Ryou, Yugi, and Malik. Hermione and Seto had left to go to Arithmancy. "Ten inches, on the first day! And now we've got Trelawney. Hey, d'you reckon that Firenze bloke's going to be there as well?"  
  
"Dunno, but I was hoping that I could drop that class. I guess we'll just have to take it for two more months..."  
  
They climbed the silver ladder and through the trapdoor to the Divination classroom. It was as stuffy as ever, and the perfumed fire was going full blast. Lavender and Parvati were sitting near the front, as usual. Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Ron, and Harry all managed to squeeze in around one table. Professor Trelawney came in, readjusting her shawl, her hugely magnified eyes peering at every one of them.  
  
She acted as if nothing had happened last year. When she spoke, it was still in her mystical voice. "My dears, welcome back to Divination. I'm pleased to see that you are all well, and have gotten here safe, as I knew you would. This month, we'll be touching up on all of the subjects that we have studied in the past. After the O.W.L.s, some of you may leave us, but some will remain with me and take two more years of Divination. They will be the ones who have traces of The Sight, and I'll guide them through their journey to uncover more about the future..."  
  
"I heard that they had to do a memory charm on her," Ron whispered to Harry as she began passing out copies of the Dream Oracle, as she had done the previous year.  
  
They began interpreting each other's dreams again, and by the time class was over, they were all thoroughly glad.  
  
"You were right, Ron," Malik said. "It really was awful-she's the biggest fraud I've ever seen." He turned to Ryou. "Maybe Isis could replace her! At least she's accurate on predictions."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
They met Hermione and Seto at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. Malik had once again chosen to sit with them instead of the Slytherins.  
  
"How did Arithmancy go, 'Mione?" asked Harry.  
  
"We have to write fourteen inches on something or the other," replied Hermione. She had gotten a little less paranoid about homework, and Harry was glad.  
  
"Hey, Seto!" It was Mokuba.  
  
Seto greeted him with a slight smile. Harry noticed Seto was like a whole different person around Mokuba. He was caring, and compassionate. He kind of wished that he had an older brother who cared about him as much as Seto cared about Mokuba.  
  
"...and I went to Herbology, and I made two new friends," panted Mokuba, finishing up his two minute long sentence.  
  
"That sounds very exciting," Seto replied. "Do you want anything to eat?"  
  
"Yeah! I'm starving!" Harry felt the same. Ron was already eating, and before long, all of them were enjoying the break in their day.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
After lunch they had Care of Magical Creatures. Seto and Yugi were discussing some kind of card game as they strode down the lawn to Hagrid's hut.  
  
"So what do we do in Care of Magical Creatures?" Malik asked.  
  
"Well, with Hagrid, you never know. Remember how we told you about Norbert, Fluffy, and all those other creatures he likes? The problem with him is that he doesn't think that they're dangerous."  
  
"Yeah, remember those Blast-Ended Skrewts, Harry?" Ron reminded him, "And Aragog?" He shuddered.  
  
"Scared, Weasley?" came a cold voice from their right. Turning, expecting to see Malfoy smirking at them, they received a big surprise. A girl was standing there with her hands on her hips, with all of the Slytherins behind her. She had sleek blond hair just like Malfoy's, cold grey eyes just like Malfoy's, and what seemed like an attitude just like Malfoy's. And Malfoy was nowhere in sight.  
  
"I wonder what the great big half-blood's going to try to give us this time," she continued. "From what I've heard, he's quite-" Then she caught sight of Yugi, Ryou, and Malik. "Hey, look, here's the Muggle lovers and Mudblood Club!"  
  
Ryou and Yugi were suddenly acting weird again. They had grown more confident, and their voices had certainly changed. They looked more sinister somehow, and radiated with dark energy. There was also some kind of dark purplish mist fogging up their vision. The new students just seemed like different people, or were they just imagining it?  
  
The girl obviously felt the atmosphere change, and her smirk faltered.  
  
"What do you think, Pharoah?" The person that looked like Ryou asked. "Should we just punish them or get rid of them so that they won't get in our way in the future?"  
  
"Uh, Tomb Robber, as much as I would want to see them die, I don't think that would be a good idea here. There'll be a lot of witnesses, and I doubt killing students is aloud at Hogwarts," Malik said loudly. Other people exchanged confused glances.  
  
"True," mused Yami Bakura. "We'll deal with *you* later," he spat, and then they strode off towards Hagrid's hut.  
  
They met Hagrid at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. He had a unicorn with him, and by the looks of it, it was only a foal. It was golden, and tossed its head nervously as they approached.  
  
"We're jus' going to be reviewin' a little bit for the firs' part of the year," Hagrid told them. "And after yer O.W.L.s are over, we can begin other things. Now this one's just a filly, so it won't protest boys that much. Now gather round, that's it, just lightly stroke it..."  
  
The amazing part was that the unicorn seemed to favor Seto the most. She nudged him when he stopped stroking her, and followed him around.  
  
"Why does it like Kaiba, and not us?" grumbled Malik.  
  
The unicorn had gone wild when he had tried to touch it, and had run over to Seto.  
  
"It probably senses our darker halves," Ryou replied.  
  
"But my Yami's in Egypt with Isis right now! How can it sense him?"  
  
"So that's why he hasn't popped up yet," Yugi said, remembering the absence of Yami Malik. Then he sighed. "Darn, I really wanted to touch it. Oh well, look, class is almost over. We'd better head back up to the castle.  
  
"I wonder who that girl is," Ron wondered aloud. "She seemed almost like Malfoy, and Malfoy was acting really weird on the train."  
  
"She's his cousin," said Neville, who had overheard them talking. "Lavender told me. She acted all snobby to her and Parvati during another class. Her name's Dracilla and she's just transferred here from Durmstrang. Crabbe and Goyle are now her bodyguards. It seems like she's just like Malfoy."  
  
This gave them all something to ponder as they walked back up to the castle to go to History of Magic.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
History of Magic was boring, as usual. Professor Binns didn't give them any pretests, but went right into his lecture about troll wars. But Hermione wasn't the only one taking notes this time. Seto, Yugi, and Ryou were also paying attention. There were times when Harry could have sworn that he had seen two Yugis or two Ryous, but when he looked again, there was only one of each. And so Professor Binns droned on. In the end, he assigned them a foot long essay on troll wars.  
  
"Where to next?" asked Yugi, as they walked out of the classroom. Ron was grumbling about homework again.  
  
"Double Potions. Be ready for the worst," warned Harry as they walked down to the dungeons.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
I didn't really know what to add/change in this chapter, so...if you have any suggestions for me, please tell me!  
  
Thank you, t.a.g.0! *starts bowing to her* 


	6. Full of Surprises

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter  
  
Okay, I'm just putting the facts straight. Seto still has Obelisk the Tormentor, Yugi still has Slifer the Sky Dragon, and Malik still has his Millennium Rod and the Winged Dragon of Ra. Oh, and Isis still has the Millennium Necklace. Got it? Yami Bakura has the Millennium Eye, though, and he's still in the Millennium Ring, which Ryou still has. Okay, just clearing misunderstandings~ Enjoy this chapter!  
  
/Blah/ Yugi talking to Yami Yugi //Blah// Yami Yugi talking to Yugi  
  
:Blah: Ryou talking to Yami Bakura ::Blah:: Yami Bakura talking to Ryou  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Professor Snape strode in shortly after they had all found seats, which was rather hard to manage because all of the girls wanted to sit by Seto. He looked even more menacing than usual, and was clutching his left forearm for some reason. He started off by taking attendance. Then he told the class, "For the first month we will be reviewing all of the previous potions we have covered. Today you will be making a Strengthening Solution. Instructions," he waved his wand at the chalkboard, "are on the board, begin now."  
  
He left them alone after that, and Harry found that making his potion was a lot easier without Snape prowling about and making nasty comments. So after they had all added the proper ingredients, they put their cauldrons away to sit for two days, as required, and talked a little bit before class ended.  
  
"So Bakura, you've lived in England before?" Hermione asked curiously.  
  
"Yes. I lived here until I was twelve," Ryou replied. "Then I moved to Domino."  
  
"Why?" asked Ron.  
  
"Er, I forgot." The truth was, he had to move because of his Yami. But since Ron didn't know about Yami Bakura, he couldn't really tell him.  
  
Seeing that Ryou was in a sticky situation, Yugi broke in.  
  
"I don't think that this class was all that bad. It was rather interesting," he said.  
  
Harry, Hermione, and Ron glanced at each other.  
  
"You haven't even seen the real Snape yet. I wonder why he's acting like this."  
  
Yugi sighed in relief in his head. They had changed the topic. Obviously this was good subject for them to stop at.  
  
"It could be...You-Know-Who," said Hermione quietly. "Look, he's still rubbing his left arm. Isn't that where the Death Eaters' marks are?"  
  
The conversation changed, they talked quietly until the end of class, and then headed for dinner.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
After dinner, they walked up to Gryffindor tower together and Malik went to the Slytherin common room.  
  
They had been working on the essay Snape had assigned them, one on the different properties of bezoars and how it was used in potions, when Malik strolled casually through the portrait hole.  
  
"What're you doing here?" Ron yelped. Many of the other Gryffindors had noticed, too.  
  
Malik shrugged. "It got too boring with the Slytherins," he said matter-of- factly.  
  
"How did you get in?" a seventh year demanded.  
  
"It was actually quite easy," Malik replied, smirking and glancing at Yugi, Ryou, and Seto, who looked at each other with understanding. "The fat person in the frilly pink dress just needed a little...persuasion..."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
It took twenty minutes to assure the rest of the Gryffindors that Malik wouldn't do any harm and that he wasn't a spy for the Slytherins. Then he joined Yugi and Ryou and they started doing their homework together.  
  
It was a while before Yugi noticed that Seto was gone. But the mystery of this was soon solved when he stepped through the portrait hole an hour later.  
  
"Where've you been?" asked Hermione. "It's almost time for bed, and you still haven't done your homework yet!"  
  
"Professor Dumbledore wants to see me every other night for something," Seto replied. Harry noticed that he wasn't giving them any specific information.  
  
"But what about your homework?" Hermione persisted.  
  
"Most of it's due after tomorrow, and at any rate, I'm already done with mine."  
  
Ron dived for Seto's bag, and sure enough, his homework was all done. It looked like he had even written a foot more than the requirements for all of his essays. His handwriting was even smaller and neater than Hermione's, if that was possible.  
  
"No way," Ron breathed. "I'm not even done with that essay that Binns gave us, and Hermione's just finished hers. How did you get everything done so fast? You must've cheated or some-"  
  
"Seto didn't cheat!" a defiant voice said. Ron looked down, and saw Mokuba. "Seto's just used to finishing everything really fast because he used to have schoolwork and regular work at the same time! This is nothing compared to what he-mmph!"  
  
"I think it's time somebody went to bed," said Seto, Mokuba dangling from his arms.  
  
"Hey! Stop it, Seto! I'm eleven already!"  
  
Once Mokuba had gone, Seto just pulled out his laptop and started working again.  
  
"So, are you going to tell us how you're doing that?" asked Harry. "And the cell phone?"  
  
Seto sighed. He looked tired out for some reason. "Fine. Okay, I've installed a special computer chip incorporated with a magic. It's custom made, and is worth about four million U.S. dollars. It works on all KaibaCorp technology, so I was able to put it in my laptop and cell phone."  
  
"Does that mean that it'll work on the Duel Disks, too?" asked Malik.  
  
"Yes, but don't expect me to give one to you," he replied shortly. "Now if you'll excuse me, it's getting a little too loud down here. Good night."  
  
And with that, he strode off towards the boys' dormitories with Nefertari hovering over him.  
  
"Is it just me, or is Seto really grumpy tonight?" asked Malik.  
  
"So that's what he's been doing," a voice said thoughtfully at the same time.  
  
"Aack!" Malik had pulled a struggling Mokuba from behind the sofa.  
  
"What're you doing now?" asked an exasperated Malik.  
  
"Not sleepy," replied Mokuba.  
  
"Wait, what were you saying, Mokuba?" asked Harry quickly. "What's Seto been doing?"  
  
"Well, after Diagon Alley, he started reading a bunch of books. And I mean a LOT of books. He ordered quite a few rare ones from some kind of wizarding thingy. Then he shut himself in his lab for days in a row, not eating anything or even sleeping. I think he was developing something...he started talking about improving the prototypes of something. And then, about a week before we were supposed to come here, he finished with something. He didn't go to his lab again, and became all normal until September 1," Mokuba finished.  
  
"So this is how he's been using Muggle technology at Hogwarts?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Yeah, I think so. It's got magic in it, too, and so I think that neutralizes the magic around us, or something. I read quite a bit of Hogwarts, A History, too," he added. Then he went on. "Either that, or the spells are so powerful that the magic here has no effect on it." At the sight of their faces, he said, "Yup, there's more than one spell. It's supposed to be really complicated, spells intertwined and woven around each other."  
  
"Wow," Ron said. "He must be a super genius or something! And what's with that attitude?"  
  
"Trust me, you haven't seen anything yet," Mokuba promised. "But please try being nice to him. He's already starting to change, especially when Nefertari's around, but I think that he just needs...somebody else..."  
  
"Somebody else?" questioned Ron.  
  
"To love, I suppose. Where's Ryou, anyway?"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Ryou was also up in the sixth year boys' dormitories. He didn't know why, but I just felt like going to bed early. He thought that it'd be rude to leave, but took his chance when Seto also retired early. He was pulling off his shirt to change into his pajamas when he was tackled back onto the bed.  
  
:'wha?:  
  
His bare chest was being attacked by somebody with spiky white hair and brown, narrowed eyes, not to mention every other part of his body that Yami Bakura could reach.  
  
"Bakur-" Hot lips devoured his own mouth, and he was silenced. The bed curtains were drawn by some invisible force, and then the full assault began.  
  
:'Kura? What're you doing?: Ryou managed to ask breathlessly.  
  
::Happy birthday, Ryou.::  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
They quickly settled in and found that Hogwarts wasn't all that bad. On the second morning, a huge flock of owls swooped down on Seto. It seemed that all of the girls had decided that he wasn't dangerous and started taking action. He was getting pelted with fan mail every day. Although Malik had taken advantage of this the first day, and teased Seto nonstop, he soon learned that this did not affect him in any way. Seto just calmly blew all of the letters into nothingness with his wand. Many of the other boys were gaping at him with shock. If they had received that much mail from girls, they certainly wouldn't blast it away.  
  
Ron seemed to be thinking the same thing when this first happened.  
  
"Is he...popular?" he whispered to Dean.  
  
"Very."  
  
"Oh."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Pretty soon Yugi, Malik, and Ryou had admirers too. On Tuesday, they each got a stack of fanmail, too. But this was soon discouraged, as they also threw all of it away or burned it up.  
  
Ron still looked confused.  
  
"They're already taken," Seto explained.  
  
This caused him to look even more confused.  
  
"Who-?" But Seto just gave him a slight smile and returned to his coffee.  
  
In Malik's case, he just vanished it with some kind of weird spell. It just disappeared with what looked like a cloud of hazy purple smoke. For some reason Yugi was glaring at him for the rest of the day and telling him in a deep voice (that was very uncharacteristic of Yugi) not to waste his Shadow Powers-whatever they were-for something as trivial as that.  
  
There were more confused people.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
On Thursday morning, Yami Bakura ran into the Great Hall carrying something golden and shiny and long in his hand with Malik hot in pursuit, shouting, "Give it back, Tomb Robber!"  
  
On the way to the end of the hall, he grabbed Yugi's Millennium Puzzle and cackled evilly, saying, "Yes! Now I have FOUR Millennium Items in my possession!"  
  
Everybody was watching their little chase. Malik chased Yami Bakura halfway up to the table where the teachers sat before there was a flash of light from the Millennium Puzzle and Yami Bakura slowed down due to some invisible force.  
  
Malik took this chance to grab one side of his Millennium Rod while Yami Bakura still held the other. In one graceful swish, he pulled out the dagger hidden within and made a swipe at Yami Bakura. He slashed the dagger in an arc around him and Yami Bakura let go of the other end of the Millennium Rod, dodging out of its way. He nearly made it, but at the end he dropped to the floor, clutching the other side of his arm.  
  
Madam Pomfrey was almost fainting with shock. Yami Bakura had looked up at Malik and removed his hand from his arm to reveal a huge gash. Blood was running out of it and staining everything red. Yami Bakura was just acting calm and collected, while his shirt turned red and his blood dripped slowly to the floor. He smirked.  
  
"Not bad, for an amateur," he commented. But Malik ignored him-he was doing a kind of strange and crazy victory dance.  
  
"Hah! In your face, Tomb Robber!" he sang, sticking out his tongue at the end. Students were looking terrified. How could the quiet, innocent, always smiling Ryou be this crazy person who looked like he was bleeding to death? And why did Malik nearly kill Ryou? What did Ryou do to deserve this?  
  
Seto, however, had vaulted over the table (he was sitting on the other side of the Gryffindor table) and hurried towards Yami Bakura.  
  
"Don't let Ryou gain control again, he's not going to be able to handle it!" Yami Bakura rolled his eyes and tried to wiggle out of Seto's grasp. Seto was holding Yami Bakura's injured arm with one hand and trying to restrain him with the other.  
  
"Stay still until I tell you to change back! You're weaker in this type of environment, and so is your magic!" he said exasperatedly. He placed his both hands over the gash that was still bleeding and muttered something indistinguishable. Nerfertari alighted on his shoulder and crooned in his ear, and then phoenix song drifted through the Great Hall, filling it with warming music. Seto's hands glowed momentarily blue before he removed them from Yami Bakura's arm. The people who were still watching gasped. The wound wasn't there anymore. All that they saw was pale, unmarred skin. Madam Pomfrey was also speechless.  
  
"But...how...?" she managed to choke out.  
  
"Change back," reminded Malik in a singsong voice. Yami Bakura glared at him one more time, and then Ryou was laying unconscious in Seto's arms. His left side was still stained crimson, and the floor was still wet with his blood, but the there was certainly nothing on his arm, not even a scar.  
  
"He's lost a lot of blood, I'm taking him up to the dormitory," Seto told Malik. "And you're coming with me." He gave Malik a look that nobody else could interpret.  
  
Then he turned to the other people gaping at them. "What're you staring at?" he snarled at them. They immediately turned back to their breakfasts, but the hall was quiet as Seto and Malik walked back into the Entrance Hall.  
  
Yugi also bounded up from his seat and went alongside them. It wasn't until they were well out of earshot before the chattering and whispering started. Nobody wanted to be with either Malik or Ryou anymore. But Seto, on the other hand...  
  
"He was sooooo coool!" squealed a girl at the Hufflepuff table.  
  
"Yeah, he really cares for everybody and everyone..." sighed her friend.  
  
"Something weird is definitely going on with the new students," Hermione said.  
  
"Especially Bakura," added Ron. "He was bleeding to death and acted like it was nothing!"  
  
"And we can't forget Seto, and how he healed Bakura's arm better and faster than what Madam Pomfrey could have done. He didn't even use a wand!"  
  
Yup. The new students seemed full of surprises.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Seto continued to disappear for about an hour every other evening. He never told them where he went, and always finished his homework before he went. But when he came back, he always seemed more tired than usual.  
  
Harry had been made Quidditch captain, and his flying rights had been given back to him, as well as his Firebolt. He had arranged for Quidditch team try-outs after the O.W.L.s, so that it wouldn't interfere with their studying.  
  
They received a bit of a surprise one day when Dracilla was teasing Mokuba in the hall.  
  
Mokuba had actually talked back to her. While all of the first years looked on with admiration, the female Malfoy was seething. A first year? Talking back to her? She was going to make him pay! But this plan did not work. As soon as she had lifted her wand, Mokuba had told her, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."  
  
"Oh, and why is that?" she had sneered back.  
  
"Because then he wouldn't like it."  
  
Dracilla turned, expecting to see a teacher behind her or something like that. But there were no teachers.  
  
"What're you talking about, you mudblood? There's nobody there. Don't think that you can fool me." She raised her wand again, but no sooner had she done so, a something poked its head out from behind Mokuba. It was a tiny dragon, only a baby, but it was still a dragon. It let out a roar that was impressive for its size, and started chasing Dracilla, Crabbe, and Goyle down the stairs, sending tiny balls of blue and white lighting after them. (sound familiar yet?)  
  
Mokuba was a hero that night in the Gryffindor common room. But he still didn't tell them where he had gotten the dragon, or where he was keeping it.  
  
"C'mon, Mokuba, tell us where it is!" a second year said eagerly.  
  
"We just want to see it, honest!" his friend added.  
  
"Where did you get a dragon, mate?" asked a third year.  
  
"What's going on?" demanded a voice that commanded respect. Seto had just ducked through the portrait hole. Oddly enough, he hadn't been with Mokuba when the dragon had made its appearance. Most people had learned that Seto wasn't a person to mess with, and had fallen silent.  
  
"They want to see my dragon, Seto," Mokuba told him in an innocent voice. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes, though.  
  
After the crowd had dispersed-with the help of a certain CEO who had certain CEO powers, of course-they started doing their homework again.  
  
Harry had noticed a change in Seto's character over the past few days. He seemed a little less tense, and was even cracking a smile or two. He also had taken to helping the rest of them with their homework, having somehow always finished his own. And the Gryffindors were used to Nefertari now. The first time she had appeared, people tried to catch her, and were immediately knocked unconscious by the Stunning Spell. (by Seto, of course)  
  
Now, they just kept a good distance away from them, and nothing like that ever happened again.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
On the way back to the Gryffindor common room from dinner one day, Seto asked Harry, "Who's that?" He indicated an Asian girl with sleek black hair at the Ravenclaw table who was looking appreciatively at him.  
  
"Oh, that's Cho Chang," Harry replied. He had gotten over her a long time ago.  
  
"Looks like a slut," Seto commented, then turned away to stride back up the staircase.  
  
Malik surveyed her critically. "Yup, definitely a slut."  
  
She was still looking hopefully at Seto, like all of the other girls in the whole building. (The ones that weren't obsessed with Yugi, Ryou, and Malik already)  
  
Harry just smiled. He was glad, for some reason. He just couldn't put his finger on it...  
  
"What're you looking so happy about?" asked Ron grumpily. "We still have McGonagall's essay to finish, not to mention another star chart to fill out."  
  
"It's nothing."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Seto made his first big mistake on Saturday. He had thrown on a random working outfit, and it turned out to be the hot purple one (you know, one that he wore when Isis gave him Obelisk?), gone to the common room, opened his laptop, ...and had gotten run over by fan girls at once.  
  
Yami Bakura, Yami Yugi, and Malik had been laughing for days afterward.  
  
Meanwhile, Mokuba had persuaded Seto to put his specially modified computer chips into Yugi's, Ryou's, and Malik's duel disks.  
  
They had watched in fascination as Seto came down the steps with a variety of strange tools that they had never seen before, taken a tiny piece of metal out of a tiny platinum-coated box. He then took something that looked like a laser pointer out and directed its beam in a specific place on Yugi's duel disk. They heard something click, and he moved to the next place.  
  
When he removed the top of the duel disk, they saw how complex everything was on the inside.  
  
"And he made all of this?" Harry murmured to Hermione in awe.  
  
He took the computer chip and placed it somewhere they couldn't even see, and then connected it with an even smaller laser device. He showed them the tiny computer that was networked to his satellite system, and all of the records of duels fought with that specific disk that he could access. Finally, he ran some checks on the overall performance of the duel disk, and then connected everything back together.  
  
As soon as the last click was heard, Yugi's duel disk flashed to life. Even Hermione was amazed with the "flashing rainbow colors" on the duel disk. Seto repeated this complex process on Ryou's and Malik's. As soon as he got his, Malik whooped and made a wild dash for the portrait hole.  
  
"Come on, people! We have duels waiting!" he called over his shoulder.  
  
Seto shook his head. "Nope, I'm not activating yours today. I think I'll do it...how about sometime tomorrow?" He flipped a small silver control box up into the air and expertly caught it again, then walked back up to the dormitories.  
  
Malik walked reluctantly back, muttering a bunch of expletives under his breath that had many people going red, and then started complaining loudly once he got to the rest of the group.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Back in the dormitory a little while later, Malik was lounging on Harry's bed, Yami Bakura and Ryou were both out on Ryou's bed, & Yugi and Yami Yugi were busy making out. Harry and Ron were still in the common room, and Seto was somewhere else.  
  
"You know, you could always use the Millennium Rod on him," Yami Bakura commented lazily, running his fingers through Ryou's hair. Ryou was dozing. He had been a little weak for a few days after the, uh, incident at breakfast.  
  
"Nope, I've already tried. For some stupid reason it doesn't work on him."  
  
Yami paused long enough to say, "It's probably because of his past. I'm surprised you still even have the Millennium Rod. It's supposed to be his, you know."  
  
"Yeah, but he won't accept it yet," Malik replied, serious for once. "But when he does, his magical powers will be reawakened, and he might even be more dangerous than before."  
  
After this mysterious comment, everyone looked at him strangely.  
  
"Is it just me, or did Malik suddenly seem smarter?" asked Yami Bakura.  
  
"Oh, yeah, I overheard Isis one day," Malik added.  
  
"Nope. Sorry, you were wrong," Yami said to Yami Bakura, as Malik got up and stretched.  
  
"Well, better get ready for dueling tomorrow! I knew that bringing my duel disk was a good thing!" He took out his dueling deck and began shuffling through it.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The next day was a clear day. Malik had dragged the rest of them outside and commanded Seto to activate their duel disks. They first decided on a tag team duel, no safety restrictions, but since Yami Bakura didn't have a God card, it was going to be unfair. By now a crowd had formed, and even a few teachers were there.  
  
"C'mon, let's just do it anyway!" an exasperated Malik cried. He had missed dueling so much that he just wanted to start. So, it was Malik and Bakura vs. Yugi and Seto. They all looked very impressive, and were all in their Battle City attire. They were going to duel with the Battle City rules, too-just not the card taking thing at the end.  
  
They inserted their decks and activated the duel disks. Then they shot out their hologram projectors. A lot of people gasped.  
  
"Let's Duel!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sorry if the romance is going really slowly. It's supposed to be an eventual YM/M, YB/B, YY/Y, and a mystery couple. If you want any HP romances, just tell me in your reviews!  
  
Um, sorry about all the sappy stuff-I really suck at writing romance (an all other types of stories, for that matter). I hope you liked the extra bit that I added in during their breakfast time. If you don't, I can take it out, but that only depends on how many people protest.  
  
And I made a new character! Dracilla is going to be the new "bad Slytherin", but can you figure out what's happening with Draco? Nope! I won't tell you, you'll just have to wait!  
  
So, please review and tell me how you like it so far! Suggestions are welcomed, and if I make any mistakes on anything, please tell me so that I can correct it!  
  
Thanks to all of my reviewers so far!  
  
Sapphire Saire: *evil cackle* And now I'm going to force you to type another chapter so that I can get all of the glory!  
  
Silver: Mmph! *gagged and tied up in a corner*  
  
Sapphire: Anyway, bye!  
  
Silver: *magically free of bindings* Sorry about Sapphire, she's my other side...sort of like a Yami. (See? I'm just like all the other people crazy about Yu-Gi-Oh! I have my own yami, too! Well, actually, she's not really a yami, but....who cares! Unlike other weird people, I'm not insisting on owning a Millennium Item) You still have to listen to Sapphire, though, okay? Bye! *runs after Sapphire* 


	7. The Battle of the Gods

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter  
  
Oh, and if some of the cards are unfamiliar, it's because I made them up! ^_^  
  
Thank you TaiSora4life and Dark-Sonic for correcting me on the duel!  
  
Just in case some of you were wondering, Diamond Dragon is actually something that I thought up a long time ago. I'm not copying anybody, and the attack and defense points are probably different from theirs.  
  
Sorry for the LONG delay! Happy reading!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Seto's LP: 4000  
  
Malik's LP: 4000  
  
Yami Yugi's LP: 4000  
  
Yami Bakura's LP: 4000  
  
Most of the students were looking on with curiosity. A few muggles who were familiar with the game were confused with the Duel Disks-they hadn't been released in England yet.  
  
They all drew and formed their hands. Yami went first.  
  
"I summon Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts (1500/1200)! In attack mode!" There were gasps as the creature materialized out of nowhere and let out a very realistic roar. Since nobody could attack until all of them took a turn, Yami set a card facedown and ended his turn.  
  
"Hey, how d'you reckon they're doing that?" Ron asked Harry, who was standing beside him.  
  
They were the front row. "Is it magic?"  
  
Hermione, who was on Harry's other side, said, "No, I think it's holographic technology. It's quite common in Japan, and Seto's company is well known for their holograms. They're almost always used in Duel Monsters, although some people still do it the old fashioned way without holograms."  
  
Meanwhile, Bakura had gone. He put a card vertically on his duel disk. "The Headless Knight (1450/1700), in attack mode." A huge card appeared on the field, and then flipped up. There was a flash of bright light, and another monster appeared, this one with its head absent from the rest of its body. "Then I'll place this card facedown." Another card materialized on the field, right behind the Headless Knight, but stayed facing down. "I'll end my turn now."  
  
Seto drew. "I'll put the Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode, and place two cards face down," he said.  
  
Malik went. "I play Makiura the Destructor (1600/1200), in attack mode! That'll end my turn. Now the real fun begins!" He cackled evilly.  
  
A random person who knew about duel monsters said to his friend, "I don't think they're very good. Why else would they start with such weak monsters?"  
  
"I read in Duelist Weekly about the Battle City tournament that Seto Kaiba hosted. There were all these new rules, and the players dueled with the duel disk system that he created. I think they're using those rules right now. And you have to sacrifice a weaker monster to summon a stronger one," his friend replied.  
  
"Yeah, Yugi Motou and Seto Kaiba are the number one duelists in the world!" a first year close to them said. "But I haven't heard of those other two."  
  
Mokuba made his way over to them. "Trust me, you haven't and you don't want to either. They're really good duelists, but, um...don't like being very well known to the public." He turned to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "So, you guys, have you been getting it so far?"  
  
"Not really," Harry said. "We've just been listening to other people."  
  
"But we still don't have a clue what's going on," added Ron.  
  
"Great!" Mokuba said excitedly. "I can help you! I know most of the cards in each other their decks because I was the commissioner at the Battle City tournament, but they've changed them a little. I'll tell you what I know, alright? Okay, see those creatures up there? Those are the monsters. The blue box next to them with the yellow numbers tells you how many attack points and defense points each one of them has. The ones on top are the attack points and the ones on the bottom are the defense points. When your monster is in attack mode, only the top numbers matter. If your opponent's monster has more attack points that you, then he can destroy your monster and take the difference of the attack points out of your lifepoints. If you lose all of your lifepoints, you basically lose the duel. But when your monster's in defense mode and it gets destroyed, none of your lifepoints get deducted. The cards facedown behind the monsters are either trap cards or magic cards. You can use those to help you win, they have all kinds of special effects, look!"  
  
Malik had held a card up. "I activate my Hinotama magic card!" Yami was blasted off his feet as flaming balls of fire rained down upon him. He landed about 10 feet from where he was before.  
  
Hermione called, "Oh my gosh! Yugi? Are you alright?"  
  
Yami was slightly smoking, although the crowd didn't know where the smoke was from. He winced as he got up slowly.  
  
Madam Pomfrey rushed halfway out but Dumbledore stopped her.  
  
"Let them deal with it themselves, Poppy. They've done this before."  
  
And Mokuba acted like this happened every day.  
  
But seeing the shocked looks on their faces, he explained, "Since there are no safety restrictions in this duel, they'll feel the attack with full force. Only my brother can reprogram their duel disks to do that." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "They've never done it without any safeguards whatsoever. I wonder why they're doing it this time...I'll bet it's because of Malik and Bakura."  
  
He turned back to them. "Anyway, there are all kinds of magic and trap cards. One is Graceful Charity, it allows you to discard two cards and draw three-it's a magic card. Pot of Greed is the same, except you only get to draw two and you don't have to send any cards from your hand to the graveyard. Others might boost the attack or defense points of your monster, like the Book of Secret Arts, or stop your opponent from attacking- Swords of Revealing Light. There're a whole lot more, but I can't tell you all, you'll have to just watch and learn. Moving on-trap cards can stop your opponent from attacking or destroy your monsters. They're usually triggered when a monster attacks, but you can see more of that later. And according to Battle City rules, you have to sacrifice a weaker monster to summon a higher leveled monster. If it's really strong, you'll have to sacrifice more than one monster. That's what they're getting ready to do."  
  
He took another huge breath. "Seto's added quite a few powerful monsters to his deck, not to mention some new magic and trap cards. He's been focusing on dragons mostly. Ya-uh, I mean, Yugi has a mix of spellcasters and other monsters, like Gazelle over there. He also has magnet warriors- Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. Other monsters he has are..." And he started rattling off everybody's cards.  
  
Five minutes later of Mokuba's rapid talking, Harry, Ron, and Hermione knew the "basics" of the game, along with the statuses of Yugi's, Bakura's, Seto's, and Malik's dueling decks.  
  
But let's rewind a little and go back to the duel.  
  
Seto's LP: 4000 Monster(s) out: Diamond Dragon (2600/2800) Lord of Dragons (1200/1100)  
  
Yugi's LP: 3400 Monster(s) out: Alpha the Magnet Warrior (1400/1700) Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600)  
  
Bakura's LP: 3950 Monster(s) out: Dark Necrofear (2200/2800)  
  
Malik's LP: 2700 Monster(s) out: Des Guardius the Masked Beast (3300/2500)  
  
It was currently Seto's turn. "I'll equip my Lord of Dragons with the Flute of Summoning Dragon! This allows me to summon two dragons to the field! And guess which ones I picked." He smirked at Bakura and Malik.  
  
"Ooooo, you're right! He does look really hot when he does that! It's way better in real life than in the magazine!" a girl exclaimed excitedly, poking her friend repeatedly and jumping up and down.  
  
The reactions of other girls were...similar.  
  
Hermione just wrinkled her nose in disgust.  
  
But when Seto threw out two Blue Eyes White Dragons, she gasped in awe, as did 99% of the other spectators. The magnificent creatures were silvery white, with sapphire eyes not unlike Seto's own. They flew up and the dragons hovered in a straight line, which was an impressive sight to see.  
  
"I see you're relying less on Obelisk," commented Malik. "I know it's in your hand. Why aren't you using it?"  
  
Seto merely shrugged. "I'd rather not use Obelisk right now. If we used a God card in this duel, with no safety restrictions, one of use is going to get seriously injured, and even their brand of magic won't be able to cure it." He paused, as if thinking. "And secondly, I prefer dragons better," he added, as an afterthought.  
  
"Whatever," Malik snorted, drawing once more. "I'll just play this magic card, Remove Trap." One of Yami's facedown cards vanished in a whirlwind of smoke. "But I can assure you that the Winged Dragon will make its appearance in this duel."  
  
Bakura tried to destroy one of Yami's magnet warriors but the Diamond Dragon rose to protect it.  
  
/Seto's a lot nicer now, isn't he, Yami?/ Yugi said brightly.  
  
Yami cast a look at Nefertari, who was hovering above Seto. //Yes, he's more willing to work together, but I'm sensing something about him that I just can't place...//  
  
/Well, it can't be too serious, can it? Um, you might also want to pay more attention to the duel, Yami!/  
  
The Yugi look-alike blinked. It was his turn, and Malik and Bakura were pointing and laughing at him. Keeping as much dignity as possible, he went as if nothing had happened. "I drew Gamma, the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800)! That means that I can use their special ability to combine them into Valkyrion, the Magna Warrior (3800/3850)!"  
  
The three magnet warriors started separating. The parts fell apart, and somehow connected together to form one huge magna warrior. The visor gleamed, and it struck an impressive pose.  
  
"Not bad, Pharoah," Malik said. "But it would've been more impressive if I hadn't already seen all of it through my Rare Hunters' eyes. Now I play this! Nightmare Wheel! As you may recall, this magic card deals 500 points of damage each turn, as well as paralyzing your monster."  
  
"I activate Card Removal," Seto said almost lazily, waving his hand carelessly at one of the cards that he had placed facedown on his very first turn, and it flipped up. They could just see the illustration on it before a bright light came from it and Malik's card vanished.  
  
"You know, we should all build new decks just for the fun of it and see how well we fare. We all know each others' decks inside out," remarked Seto, as he drew another card. He took a look at it and gave Bakura and Malik a half smile. One of pity. "I'll sacrifice my Lord of Dragons and the Battle Ox to summon my third and last Blue Eyes White Dragon!" He slid two cards off of his duel disk and pushed them into the slot at the side if his disk to discard them. Then he set one more card on the duel disk. The holographic readers on the disk flashed momentarily, along with a sound of it registering.  
  
There was another collective gasp from the crowd. Yet another silvery white dragon was emerging from the card that had just appeared on the field. It roared loudly as the card vanished.  
  
"Wow! Look! Seto Kaiba's got all three of his Blue Eyes White Dragons out!" a first year exclaimed breathlessly. "There're only four in the whole world, and the fourth can't even be used anymore! He's invincible with those cards!" There was even more murmuring, mainly among the people who knew about Duel Monsters, but others who were awed by the glorious dragons were also whispering excitedly.  
  
"I'll bet Seto's going to fuse them with Polymerization and create the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon," Mokuba said to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. But others around him were hanging on to every single word he said. "But you never know. He's pretty unpredictable now. He's changed his way of dueling completely, so maybe he won't. It'd be a sight to see, though. Oh, hey, Nefertari." The blue phoenix had flown over to Mokuba. He stroked her gently.  
  
On the field, Seto was speaking to Yami.  
  
"Your Valkyrion is pretty powerful, but can you beat this?" He took a card from his hand and slid it into a slot in his duel disk.  
  
"Polymerization," Mokuba whispered, as the card appeared before them.  
  
"I'll play Polymerization!" Seto said. Mokuba grinned.  
  
"Big surprise," said Malik to Bakura.  
  
"I knew it!" he told Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Seto's still got the competitive streak in him. He and Yami used to be really big rivals. Now look!"  
  
"Yami?" Ron muttered to Harry without being overheard by Mokuba. "Who's that?"  
  
"I dunno," Harry started to say. "And what's up with Ryou? Why are all of his monsters so creepy looking-" he broke off in mid sentence then exclaimed, "Wow, look at that!"  
  
"I'll fuse my three Blue Eyes White Dragons into the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon!" Seto said triumphantly. If the crowd was surprised before, it was nothing like what was happening now. With a flash of bright light, the three identical beasts had disappeared, only to be replaced by another huge dragon, this one with three heads. There were yells of astonishment from more than half of the audience. As the dragon let out a deafening roar, its attack and defense stats were displayed, to another round of gasps.  
  
Attack points: 4500 Defense points: 3800  
  
"That thing's enormous!" Lavender Brown shrieked.  
  
"The Egyptian God Cards are way bigger," commented Mokuba.  
  
"Look at its stats! They're off the charts!" a second year cried.  
  
"The Egyptian God cards are more powerful," Mokuba said casually, inspecting his nails and looking bored. He grinned again at Harry, Ron, and Hermione.  
  
"Pretty impressive, isn't it? But like I said, the Egyptian God cards are more powerful and much bigger."  
  
"What are Egyptian God cards?" asked Ron, who had begun to actually enjoy the game.  
  
"They're the three most powerful cards in the world. Unlike others, there's only one copy of each. Their data hasn't been released to the public, that's why nobody except a few people know. We'd face a string of thefts and everybody would want them if everyone knew about it. Oh, wait, Seto's going to do something else."  
  
Seto had activated a new magic card that just came out a few weeks ago, Armored Hide.  
  
"When'd you get that?" asked Malik conversationally. "It's basically the same as Metalmorph, right?"  
  
"Yeah, except the effect stays in play even when you don't attack, and it increases your power by 500 points instead of 400 points. I just added it to my deck this morning. Oh, and one more thing. It also increases your defense points by 700," he added casually.  
  
And now the metallic monster on the field was the Blue Eyes Ultimate Metal Dragon (5000/4300).  
  
Duel Monster fans nearly fainted. They had NEVER seen something that powerful in their lives.  
  
"Just reminding you, High Priest, you're supposed to be competing with us, and not your partner," Bakura told Seto. "But go ahead, if you must. See, we aren't objecting much."  
  
"Whatever, and don't call me that. The past is the past, and I'm not your High Priest anymore," he returned. "Now, Instant Attack will let my fusion monster attack you immediately, so go, Blue Eyes Ultimate Metal Dragon! Attack Bakura with Nuclear Fission Blast!"  
  
Bakura never had a chance. The attack exploded into Dark Necrofear, and 2800 lifepoints subtracted themselves from Bakura's lifepoint counter. When the smoke cleared, Bakura was doubled over, gasping for breath, his hand clutching his side.  
  
Bakura's LP: 1150  
  
"I'm impressed," Seto commented. "Normally, an attack like that would have caused permanent mental damage as well as physical damage."  
  
"Well, I'm not a puny wimp like the Pharoah," Bakura managed to sneer. There was even a small dribble of blood at the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away. They could see multiple small scratches on his arm. And then he started laughing.  
  
"Is Ryou insane?!?!" Ron exclaimed in disbelief. "He looks like he's just gone through a couple of Cruciatus Curses, and he's still laughing!"  
  
Hermione also frowned. It was impossible to believe that this was the same, soft-spoken Ryou that they had first met. It was almost like he had a split personality...  
  
"And remember, once Dark Necrofear is destroyed, Dark Sanctuary comes into play!" Bakura said, once he had regained his position next to Malik. Now a little blood was escaping from the wounds on his arm. He paid no attention to them.  
  
Madam Pomfrey was horrified, to say the very least. She was to be heard arguing with Dumbledore. "That young man needs help, Albus!"  
  
"Let them handle it themselves," Dumbledore repeated, holding Madam Pomfrey back.  
  
Her struggling stopped abruptly as she let out another horrified sound. The entire field was being encased in a cloudy substance, including the people watching. Several girls screamed as eyes above them began opening and mouths appeared. They could just see a dark castle floating in the horizon. Many of the teachers were murmuring to each other.  
  
"Is it magic?" squeaked Professor Flitwick, turning all around, only to face the wall of Dark Sanctuary again.  
  
"No, I don't think it is," Professor McGonagall replied.  
  
"But if it isn't magic, then what is it?"  
  
"I don't know. Albus, over here! What do you think this is?"  
  
"Oh, it's nothing to be worrying about," the headmaster replied cheerily. He had just made his way over to the group of professors. Madam Pomfrey's attention seemed to have been diverted by the new and creepy atmosphere. "It's only muggle technology, the whole thing's just a hologram. But I must say that it's quite advanced."  
  
Bakura was finishing his turn. "I activate Exchange! This card allows me to take one card from your hand, Seto, and you to take one from my hand. I'll take Obelisk, thank you."  
  
Seto just handed it over and took Bakura's Swords of Revealing Light.  
  
"And now, I'll sacrifice one of my monsters to keep Dark Sanctuary in play. Oh, and by the way, the evil spirit of Dark Sanctuary has already possessed one of your monsters. If you try to attack with that monster, it'll attack you instead." He laughed evilly.  
  
Yami chose not to attack, since both his and Seto's monsters were high level monsters, and would be fatal if either one of them attacked. Little did the others know, he was also biding his time to draw the right monster. He just put one monster facedown on the field. Nobody knew why Malik nor Bakura didn't destroy it.  
  
Malik played Card of Sanctity, and all of the players drew until they each had six cards in their hands. Then he reminded Seto and Yami that the evil spirit of Dark Sanctuary was still in one of their monsters.  
  
So Seto just placed a card facedown and ended his turn.  
  
"Thank you, Malik, for helping me get just what I needed," Bakura said. "First, Graverobber will rob Seto's grave. Ah, just the card I was looking for." He flipped over the card that he just obtained. "Soul Exchange will allow me to take your pathetic face down card, since I don't feel like taking away your precious Blue Eyes, but it'll be much more fun this way. I sacrifice two of my monsters to summon...Obelisk the Tormentor!" The ground itself began to shake. Almost everybody screamed.  
  
"How can this be just a hologram?" asked Professor McGonagall. "I can feel the ground shaking. No imaginary thing can do that!" What was with the new students?  
  
Low, dark clouds were rolling in, and lightning had begun to strike the playing field and all around it. A beam of light was emitted from the heavens and struck the ground right behind Bakura. A huge blue god-like monster was suddenly towering over them. It was almost the same size as the castle itself. Now the students, not to mention the teachers, were terrified beyond imagination.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were gaping at the huge monster. Mokuba was outraged. "Hey! That's my big brother's card!" Ron turned to Mokuba.  
  
"How can you be worrying about that?" he asked in a hollow voice. "That thing looks like it's about to kill us all!"  
  
"Nah, it won't kill us," Mokuba replied. "And the other God cards are just as big. I wonder what'll happen when all three are summoned?"  
  
The other three just looked at him as if he was nuts.  
  
Bakura smirked at the others. "If you're wondering how I can control this monster, it's because I also happen to have royal blood in my veins. But we must get back to the duel. And now, Obelisk, absorb this monster's energy to increase your own!"  
  
Obelisk the Tormentor: 5200/5200  
  
The duel monsters fans were goggling up at Obelisk.  
  
"Somebody pinch me," a third year muttered. "Ouch. Okay, this is real...but it can't be..." He looked up at Obelisk again, and promptly passed out.  
  
"I won't attack this turn, I have to give you some time to fight back, don't I? And I must give my partner here some time to summon his own God card," said Bakura.  
  
"Yup!" Malik said happily. "Alright, I'm going to sacrifice my Masked Beast," he slid the card off of his duel disk and the grotesque figure of the monster vanished, "and another monster," he discarded one more card, "to summon the Winged Dragon of Ra!"  
  
More clouds were rolling in, and lightning was hitting the ground more frequently now. More girls fainted. Another beam of bright light had descended upon them, this time leaving behind a gigantic golden ball. Malik began to chant:  
  
"Great beast of the sky, please hear my cry,  
  
Transform thyself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight."  
  
The ball began to glow brighter and open up. Malik continued:  
  
"Envelope the desert with your glow and cast your rage upon my foe.  
  
Unlock your powers deep within so that together we may win.  
  
Appear in this Shadow Game as I call your name...  
  
Winged Dragon of Ra"  
  
Now the ball had completely uncurled itself. Malik also smirked as the Winged Dragon of Ra finally showed itself, and let out a roar. It was a fantastic golden beast, and as it spread its glimmering wings, its stats were revealed. More people fainted.  
  
Winged Dragon of Ra: 5300/5100  
  
"Top that, Pharoah! Tell you what, I'll even not attack this turn and still give you a chance, how about that?"  
  
So of course, Yami took the challenge, and pretty soon, the long red coils of Slifer the Sky Dragon were trailing down from the sky, static traveling along the its long sinewy body. It opened its bottom mouth and roared. The grass rippled as the force of the roar passed. Now over three quarters of the students were out cold, and a few of the professors were, too.  
  
Slifer the Sky Dragon: 6000/6000  
  
Yami had six cards in his hand, so Slifer was more powerful than the other two God monsters.  
  
'What are these creatures?' thought Dumbledore. 'And what is this powerful wave of magic that came along with them? It feels like it's more than enough to destroy the world! I'll have to have a talk with these new students later,' he decided.  
  
The three huge monsters were occupying most of the Hogwarts grounds. Through his numb disbelief Harry saw that they were more than five times bigger than the Blue Eyes Ultimate Metal Dragon.  
  
"ATTACK!" was the order from three of the four duelists. Each of the Gods prepared to launch their mighty assaults.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Miles away from where the Battle of the Gods was taking place, someone was concentrating hard. About a half hour ago, there was a huge wave a feeling from somewhere. Somewhere, he knew, Harry Potter was experiencing something like nothing he had ever experienced before. It had to be, for the emotion to travel all this distance.  
  
The long, pale skeletal hand on the armrest clenched in frustration as he tried to access more of this boy's feelings. At the same time, he was thinking, 'That foolish old man should've killed him when he had the chance. Does he not realize that he has once again left Harry Potter wide open to my probes? Now let me see where this immense power is coming from.'  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The light was so bright that Harry had to squint to see. At the last second, everything vanished. It took a few minutes for everything to fade and the clouds to disappear. Soon it was sunny again, with a cloudless blue sky.  
  
Harry looked around wildly, as did the other twelve or so people who were still conscious. Why had everything ended? Finally, a quiet voice broke the silence.  
  
"They would've destroyed everything, you know," Seto said quietly. In his hand was some kind of remote control. It seemed that he had deactivated the holograms somehow.  
  
"But Seto..." whined Malik. "It was just about to get exciting!"  
  
"No, the others would have been in danger." Seto waved a hand out behind him. "The students, the professors, and the castle. They all would've been destroyed. The attack could've caused more than one of us to be injured traumatically. And you were letting on too much about us."  
  
'What was going on?' Harry wondered. 'They were just holograms after all, right? Why was Seto talking about trauma and injuries?' All these questions were making his head hurt. He just wanted to go to sleep, and rest. It had been a long day...  
  
Then, suddenly, his scar gave a burst of pain, and he acknowledged Voldemort's anger without really realizing it. He had gotten so used to it happening he could now distinguish the difference. 'Why was he mad this time?' he thought vaguely, before somebody's voice cut through his thoughts.  
  
"Fine, fine. Let's go then."  
  
And to their awe, the four started walking back to the castle, acting like nothing at all had happened, Mokuba joining them. They didn't seem to notice the absence of the trees and other plant life that usually decorated the grassy-oh, yeah, there wasn't any grass left.  
  
Albus Dumbledore watched them go silently, wondering if there was more to the four new teens than it seemed. Then he looked back at the people sprawled all around him. There was going to be a whole lot of people to revive.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Thank you so much! I actually did it! I actually made it to 50 reviews! Sorry if the duel was a bit boring. I couldn't come up with any ideas. If I got any of the cards wrong-out of the ones that actually exist-please tell me!  
  
I promise there'll be romance in later chapters. As for the pairings, you'll just have to find out, won't you?  
  
Sapphire Saire: Ah, yes. Yet another way to get them to keep on reading...  
  
Silver Saire: Whatever. Oh, and I decided not to get a beta reader, sorry! I brought it up with my friends, and they pointed out that my grammar and spelling were right 99.9% of the time, and so...yeah. But if you have suggestions, please feel free to send them in so I can modify the chapters.  
  
And once again, thank you reviewers!  
  
Sapphire Saire: Especially the ones who've reviewed for every chapter. Oh, and did I mention that she also made a goal for herself? Since it's the seventh chapter, she's hoping to get 70 reviews before she posts the next one. You know, 10 for each chapter?  
  
Silver Saire: Be quiet, you! Ahem, anyway...After this, things should be going smoothly. I was slacking off and didn't want to write the duel. So! Please review, and I hope you've enjoyed the story so far, because there's a lot more to come! 


	8. Caught?

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Harry Potter.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The next day, only a few students showed up for each class, and the Infirmary was full of patients claiming that they had almost been killed. Some were still unconscious.  
  
Early in the morning, Yami Bakura had snuck up there and cast a weak memory spell on all of them. They would only remember a little of the duel that had occurred.  
  
"You know some of the stronger minded students will remember a bit more, right?" asked Malik, surveying a sleeping Ryou. The magic that Yami Bakura had used had worn both of them out.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose they'll all remember, in time," Yugi replied. "And the teachers will remember everything. But we've done as much as we can. Come on, we'll be late to class."  
  
Harry, Hermione, and Ron were some of the few who were still "sane". They were currently standing out in the courtyard, in their favorite corner, talking about the duel. And how strange the newcomers were.  
  
"It's like they're different people sometimes," Harry said.  
  
"Yeah, one minute they're all nice, and then they're all creepy," added Ron.  
  
"Why, though?" asked Hermione quietly. "I've done some research in the library on the topic. Do you think that they're being possessed, or something? What if they're working for Voldemort?"  
  
"Come off it, 'Mione," Ron said, even though he looked a bit unnerved. "How could they be possessed? Dumbledore wouldn't have taken them in if they're being possessed and working for You-Know-Who."  
  
"But what if he didn't know?"  
  
"What's with the 'pharaoh' thing with Yugi?" asked Harry hastily, changing the subject. Surely Dumbledore wouldn't have admitted them to Hogwarts if they were working for Voldemort.  
  
"Yeah, they've called him that several times. And remember how Ryou was acting at breakfast the other day?"  
  
"Maybe it's just a game," said Ron hopefully. The others looked doubtful.  
  
"Hermione," Harry suddenly said, remembering something from the previous day, "do you know what a 'yami' is?"  
  
"No, but I'll look it up later, it sounds like something from a different language."  
  
Ron checked his watch. "Well, we're almost late, we'd better get to Charms if we don't want Professor Flitwick on us."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Many of the professors were also still out of it. During most of their classes, the students-the ones that were still "alive"-had just sat around and talked.  
  
Seto, Yugi, and Malik acted normally enough, and when Ryou turned up, they started another game of Duel Monsters, this time the old fashioned way, on the table, and without electronics. Ron immediately took interest in it, and pretty soon, the four were teaching Harry, Ron, and Hermione how to actually play. They remembered very little from the lecture that Mokuba had [given] them, but would occasionally remember a card when it was shown to them.  
  
And as they didn't have anything to do in their lessons, this was an ideal opportunity to learn. When they entered the Transfiguration classroom, however, they soon realized that they weren't going to get that a free class. Professor McGonagall promptly assigned them ten more inches on Vanishing Spells, "To refresh your memories," as she put it, and then made them pair up and practice on animals again.  
  
Harry paired up with Ron, and they soon realized that their minds were completely empty. They didn't have the slightest clue on how to vanish anything. It seemed that they had forgotten everything that they had learned the previous year.  
  
Yugi, along with Ryou and Malik (after serious begging to Professor McGonagall), were the only group of three in the class. Ryou was the only one that looked like he knew what was going on, but he was looking dazed after a minute or so of trying to vanish their second animal, and Yugi looked like he was spacing out most of the time. Malik was darting from Yugi to Ryou, trying to wake them up. Harry did not understand why they were acting in such a peculiar fashion, but Seto seemed amused by Malik's antics.  
  
Seto's partner was Hermione. They made quite the team, to say the very least. Each of them took turns vanishing whatever animal was on the table. Every time one disappeared, a larger animal took its place. It was almost as if they were having a contest. Professor McGonagall was watching them with a vague smile on her face.  
  
Seto seemed almost bored by the lesson, and vanished a German Shepherd with minimal effort. Hermione, on the other hand, looked like she had to concentrate with all her might to vanish the next one, a Great Dane.  
  
At last she failed to succeed. The whole class was watching now. Could it be? Somebody who was actually better than Hermione Granger? The tiger on the ground growled menacingly. Seto pointed his wand at it, said the correct spell, and it vanished.  
  
"I see you're still excelling in the arts, Seto," Malik said, still trying to bang Yugi on the head with the Millennium Rod. Yugi seemed to be automatically ducking every time Malik swung the rod around. "So can you help me with these two?" He then tried to whack Ryou instead, but a hand caught the Millennium Rod in midair.  
  
Ryou's eyes came back into focus and became sharper. Harry shivered. There was a coldness in his eyes that wasn't there before. The brown orbs had become completely emotionless, and there was a sneer that had replaced Ryou's usual soft smile. Harry didn't know how, but Ryou just felt different. It was the same aura that had surrounded him at breakfast the other day. Hermione's words echoed in his head.  
  
Were they true? Could the new students possibly be possessed? They seemed so different at times...  
  
"About time-" Malik had started to say, but then gave a yelp as the Millennium Rod was yanked out of his hands. "Hey!" he cried indignantly. "Give that back!"  
  
Yami Bakura just laughed and flew out of his reach, his feet hovering a few inches off the ground. Harry blinked. Wait a minute. Flew? He looked back at Ryou's feet. He was standing on the ground, now holding the Millennium Puzzle, too. He'd swiped it from Yugi without anybody really seeing it.  
  
"Four items once again, hm, Bakura?" said Seto, vanishing even more animals just for fun. He vanished an elk, a bison, and then a giraffe, which only managed to fit in the classroom because of its high ceiling.  
  
Yugi sprang back into life, his crimson eyes flashing-crimson? Since when did Yugi have crimson eyes? Harry looked again. Yugi had grabbed his puzzle back and was placing it back around his neck. His eyes were definitely violet. 'Am I seeing things?' Harry wondered. He rubbed his eyes. Malik was now trying to get his Millennium Rod back. Ryou apologized and handed it to him without any hesitation. He seemed a bit surprised to see himself standing on a desk in the middle of the classroom and turned a slight shade of pink as he stepped down.  
  
Thoughts raced through Harry's mind. What was going on? Hadn't Ryou wanted taken the Millennium Rod just moments ago? Maybe Hermione was right. The new students had very strange split personalities or were being possessed. Either would explain the sudden changes.  
  
"Uh, Harry? Harry?" Ron was waving a hand in front of his face. "Class is over, if you haven't noticed yet." Harry frowned.  
  
"Did you just see what happened?" he asked.  
  
"See what happen, mate?" Ron replied. "You mean how Seto totally kicked Hermione's butt in class?"  
  
"No, no, the thing with Yugi and Ryou," Harry said. He tried to remember what had really happened, but found that he couldn't. All that he knew was that it involved three of the new students.  
  
"Nothing happened with Yugi and Ryou. Are you sure you're alright? You've been spacing out way more than usual."  
  
And now there was absolutely nothing he could remember, besides how Seto had vanished the tiger when Hermione couldn't. He told Ron not to worry about it, and then looked up at the front of the classroom. Professor McGonagall was now talking with Yugi, Malik, Ryou, and Seto. When Harry looked at them again, he could see a glimpse of two other figures, almost transparent. They looked identical to Ryou and Yugi. He froze. They were gone.  
  
He rubbed his eyes vigorously as he, Ron and Hermione walked down to lunch. Was he starting to have hallucinations?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"It's all *your* fault, Tomb Robber," Malik said grumpily, as the three made their way to the headmaster's office.  
  
At the end of lesson, Professor McGonagall had called them to the front and asked them to explain what had happened during the Transfiguration class. It was a bit... difficult, and they only managed to escape after Seto talked to her. He did have a special way with words, after all.  
  
All the same, they had to go see Dumbledore now. Professor McGonagall had given them instructions to his office. Strange instructions.  
  
"What?" snapped Yami Bakura. "I was the one who had to cast all those memory spells on them. It wasted even more of my strength!"  
  
"Yeah, and forget to do the teacher? Who, might I remind you, is second-in- command at this school? Yup, very smart," Malik retorted sarcastically. "And if you hadn't been trying to steal out Millennium items AGAIN, we wouldn't be in this mess. How're we going to worm our way out of this one?"  
  
He glared and then said, in a falsely high-pitched voice, "Oh, yes, Professor, we just forgot to mention that Yugi, Ryou, and Malik have evil darker sides who try to cause chaos everywhere. Don't worry, they won't be much trouble. All they've done so far is land half of the school in the Hospital Wing and try to kill each other with their Shadow powers, not to mention traumatize Madam Pomfrey with their stupid-and did I mention bloody?-stunts!"  
  
He finally drew breath, and then glared expectantly at them.  
  
"We'll just have to tell him the truth," Yugi decided. "He seems like the kind of person that we can trust. Oh, no! Bakura, are you okay?" Yami Bakura had stopped and leaned on a banister for support. His breathing was slightly more labored that usual, and beads of sweat were shining on his forehead in his effort to stay conscious.  
  
"This is the second time today you've had to cast memory spells-you must be really weak after using all of that Shadow energy!" Yugi was trying his best to give some support to Yami Bakura. "Hey! Somebody help me with Yami Bakura!"  
  
Meanwhile, Yami Bakura was trying to push Yugi away, mumbling something about not needing the stupid Pharaoh's hikari to help him. He was doing a very good job of slowing them all down on their way to Dumbledore.  
  
Seto rolled his eyes, muttered, "I can't believe I'm going to do this- again," and then backtracked to Yami Bakura. "Okay, your host's body is weaker than the rest of ours, and your Shadow powers are blocked somewhat by the modern magical atmosphere at this school, so it's going to be a little harder to use your type of magic here. It'll drain you of more energy than usual if you use your Shadow powers in such great amounts like this, or in any amount, for that matter." He turned around. "And that goes for the rest of you, too."  
  
Yami Bakura was doing his best to keep his evil look about him, but the glare and narrowed eyes were faltering. Just as he started to collapse, Seto steadied him again.  
  
"Hold out your hand, Bakura," he instructed. He placed one of his own hands a fraction of a centimeter from Yami Bakura's, much to the other's dislike. But as he had no choice (it was either get help, or pass out), he didn't object. Oh well, at least he wasn't touching him or anything.  
  
Since they were all experienced with magic to an extent, they could vaguely feel the transfer of energy from Seto to Yami Bakura. They could just make out two skinny, faint blue beams of light connecting their hands together, running from Seto's hand to Yami Bakura's.  
  
All of the other students were at lunch. If they weren't, they would have seen an almost opaque sphere in the middle of the hallway that blended in perfectly with the background. Okay, they wouldn't have seen it if they just glanced at it, but if they'd looked closely around the area, they probably would've spotted it. The sphere vanished once Seto had finished transferring sufficient power for Yami Bakura to stand on his own and walk independently.  
  
"Where'd you learn that?" asked Malik in awe, their predicament temporarily forgotten. It was only a low level of ancient magic being used, but as Seto didn't even have his memories from the past back, it was practically impossible for him to have mastered the technique.  
  
"That wasn't the kind of magic that they teach at this school," agreed Yami. "It was magic from the old days, ancient Egypt. I remember the High Priest using that on me a few times."  
  
He could still recall the warm feeling that had spread throughout his body when the energy transfer magic had been used on him. It truly felt wonderful when that happened, like his very soul was getting renewed. The warmth had spread to every section of his body, and had even targeted small wounds, healing muscle cramps and aches, and mending cuts. But then again, he remembered, it was coming from the best-the High Priest of the whole empire, possibly the world. He knew that if a common mage were doing it, there wouldn't be any feeling at all.  
  
Yugi sensed his emotions, and asked worriedly, /Yami, are you feeling all right? There seems to be a lot on your mind. You were remembering something from your past, weren't you?/  
  
His dark mentally smiled. Yugi was getting really good at reading mind currents, but still never intruded upon his privacy.  
  
"Thoughts and memories are private and sacred!" Yugi had said indignantly. "I would never read them unless I had permission. It's your choice whether you want to share them with me or not."  
  
//I'm fine,// he replied. //But we'd better get going if we don't want to miss lunch altogether.//  
  
Yami Bakura was staring in bewilderment at Seto. Why had he helped him again? And what did he do to make him feel the best he'd ever felt in his life? The feeling that had enveloped him had been indescribable. It had been breath-taking-the heat that had rushed from his hand to every other square inch of his body had left him fully refreshed.  
  
Well, it was easy to see that he had never gotten that kind of treatment in his past.  
  
Seto just sighed, and then said, "We'd better get going. At this rate, he'll think that we've been attacked or killed or something." All that staring from the others was getting unsettling. Sure, they were friends now, but they weren't really THAT close.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Five minutes later they were standing in front of a stone gargoyle.  
  
"Er..." Malik started, then turned and looked at the rest of them. "What did McGonagall say the password was again?"  
  
"Pocky," Seto enunciated clearly. The gargoyle sprang to life, and a winding staircase started moving slowly upward.  
  
"Well?" growled Yami Bakura. They stepped onto the stone escalator and were soon facing the door to the headmaster's office. It suddenly opened, and they saw the golden half-moon spectacles of Albus Dumbledore winking at them.  
  
"Come on in!" the headmaster said heartily. "Would you like some tea? Pumpkin juice?"  
  
Once they had all received drinks and found seats (actually, he literally drew chairs for them), Dumbledore brought up the subject that they had came for.  
  
"Professor McGonagall told me that something very peculiar happened in her Transfiguration class today. Would you care to tell me about it?"  
  
Yugi, Malik, and Ryou (he'd changed back right before) shifted uncomfortably.  
  
"Um," Yugi said, looking up at Dumbledore, and then deciding to plunge straight ahead, said, "As you know, we have these artifacts from ancient Egypt-the Millennium items. Bakura has the Millennium Ring and the Millennium Eye, Malik has the Millennium Rod, and I have the Millennium Puzzle." At this point, he ran a hand along the golden pieces of the puzzle around his neck.  
  
/Yami! Help me!/  
  
//Just tell him the truth. We can trust him.//  
  
/Just a little, then. The basic facts should be enough./  
  
Yugi's eyes shifted out of focus for a few seconds during this conversation, and Dumbledore noticed the faraway look in his eyes. He said nothing about it.  
  
"Uh, anyway, there are... spirits in many of the items. They got trapped there a about 5000 years ago, we think, in Egypt. There're seven in total, and we still don't know for sure if there are spirits in all of the items, but Shadi-he's the guy who has the Millennium Ankh (Millennium Key) and the Millennium Scales-said that once the right person possessed the right item, the spirit would be released. They're kind of like companions."  
  
When Dumbledore made no comment, he went on.  
  
Or rather, he tried to go on.  
  
Somebody had suddenly burst in through the door.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, sir- oh, am I interrupting something?" Severus Snape was standing in the doorway, looking paler than usual. He was clutching his left forearm again, and was breathing hard. He had obviously just run a great distance.  
  
"Severus! Do sit down I was just talking to the new transfer students -"  
  
"Yes, but Professor, this is urgent," Snape continued, never breaking eye contact with Dumbledore. They exchanged a significant look, and then Dumbledore turned to the others.  
  
"I'm very sorry. Could you four come later tonight? Say... around eight or so? That'd be great, thanks!" And then he all but shoved them out the door and down the stairs.  
  
"Sheesh!" Malik grumbled, looking back at the now immobile gargoyle. He rubbed his arm where he had knocked it when Dumbledore had "escorted" them out of his office.  
  
"Well, on the bright side, we still have a few more hours before we have to spill the beans," Yugi said, looking like he didn't even believe himself.  
  
"That's supposed to be a bright side?" asked Yami Bakura, his eyebrow raised. Yup, he was very unconvinced.  
  
"Umm, we can rehearse what to tell him... or not..." he trailed off as he watched them walk off, completely ignoring him. "Ugh." He hit himself on the forehead for actually thinking that they'd listen to him, and then rushed to catch up.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"There you are!" Ron greeted them as they sat down at the Gryffindor table. "We were getting worried that you wouldn't show up." Well, that was only half of the truth. They had been talking about the four until Yugi, Ryou, and Malik had entered the Great Hall.  
  
Hermione frowned. "Where's Seto?" she asked. Yugi looked around. He seemed to have vanished. Again.  
  
Malik brushed the question away with a "somewhere in the world" reply.  
  
Harry, on the other hand, was looking at Ryou-or who he thought was Ryou. He had somehow acquired an almost raw steak, and was looking at it hungrily.  
  
"Er, Ryou?" Harry ventured.  
  
"What?" snapped Yami Bakura without looking away from his precious steak.  
  
"You're not going to, uh, eat that, are you?" The piece of meat was practically drowning in blood.  
  
"Of course I am, what kind of question was that?"  
  
Malik, Ron, and Hermione's attentions had also been diverted to Yami Bakura.  
  
Their reactions were all quite different.  
  
"Cool! Where'd you get that?" asked Malik. He was peering up and down the long table, looking for where the platter for raw meat was.  
  
"You know, you might get sick if you eat that, Ryou," warned Ron. He had turned a little green upon seeing the way Yami Bakura was looking at the steak.  
  
And of course, Yami Bakura just ignored Ron's little 'fact'.  
  
Hermione just looked as if she was going to be sick.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"What did Bakura eat at lunch, anyway?" asked Ryou in a whisper as they walked back to the Gryffindor common room after their final class. He was clutching his stomach, and looked like he was about to be sick.  
  
"Er, he kinda ate a whole steak," Malik said nervously.  
  
"Let me guess. Was it raw?" he managed to get out.  
  
Malik plastered on a huge fake smile and nodded.  
  
"I knew I shouldn't have let him go to lunch for me..." He suddenly froze in his tracks. "Please excuse me." He made a mad dash for the nearest bathroom.  
  
"You know, I don't know why everyone thinks that Ryou's all that innocent. He's probably going to kill the Tomb Robber later," Malik mused, watching him shove a bunch of girls aside on the way to the bathroom.  
  
"Maybe it's because they've never seen him really lose his temper," Yugi suggested, pulling out a planner full of their homework assignments.  
  
"Why do you do that anyway?" asked Malik, wrinkling his nose in disgust.  
  
"Let's see. I think we can finish Snape's essay and maybe fit in a few inches of Professor McGonagall's," Yugi said loudly, ignoring the other teen.  
  
"Or we could just copy Seto's," Malik said, flashing a bright smile at him.  
  
"We'll see," he replied.  
  
"Yes! You know, there's hope for you yet, Priest!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"See?" Hermione hissed at Ron and Harry. They were currently hiding behind a pillar, watching Yugi, Seto, and Malik return to the common room. They'd also caught Ryou's little incident. And were very confused.  
  
"Ryou didn't even know what he had eaten for lunch!" Hermione pointed out.  
  
"It's because he has a really short term memory!" Ron retorted.  
  
"Or because he was being possessed at the time!"  
  
"Stop it, you two, I'm trying to think," Harry said angrily, running his fingers through his hair. Ryou had said, 'What did Bakura eat at lunch?' But Ryou WAS Bakura. It just didn't make sense, unless he liked talking in third person. It was also very uncharacteristic of him to eat a whole raw steak, but then again, they didn't really know them well.  
  
He ran all of this by Ron and Hermione.  
  
"He's being possessed, there's no other explanation!" Hermione said stubbornly.  
  
"How're you so sure?"  
  
"I looked up 'yami' in the library. You were right, Harry, it was something in Japanese. It means 'dark' or 'darkness'. Ryou could have a dark side that possesses him!"  
  
"You don't know for sure if that's right, though."  
  
Harry shut his eyes tight. If only they would stop bickering for once!  
  
"Listen, both of you might be right. We just don't know yet. The only way we'll know for sure is if they decide to tell us. There's definitely something up with Yugi and Ryou. Malik seems like his personality's just that way. We're pretty good friends, right? They'll tell us."~  
  
He sighed. He_hoped_that they would tell them. The new students seemed pretty unpredictable now that they were at Hogwarts. Then again, they weren't really close in Diagon Alley. They would have to spend more time with them if they wanted to know the truth.  
  
And what was with Malfoy, anyway? Draco, not Dracilla. He hadn't bothered them at all so far.  
  
What about the intense pain that had come from his scar after the duel? Voldemort hadn't bothered him with such anger since the previous year.~  
  
He shut his eyes tight. There was way too much going on in his head. What he needed to do was clear his mind. He needed to just wipe it clean. Just take some thoughts away for a while.  
  
"Harry? Are you okay?"  
  
He opened his eyes. Ron was peering into his face. Hermione was looking worried.  
  
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I think I'm going to go to bed early today, bye." He walked away, rubbing his scar.  
  
They distinctly heard him mutter, "...Need to get a Pensieve... maybe could borrow... Dumbledore...."  
  
"What's up with him?" asked Ron.  
  
"I don't know-sounds like he's pretty preoccupied right now. I guess there's no use in pestering him with homework tonight. He probably needs to get some rest."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Yes, yes yes yes!" Malik was running around the Gryffindor common room, holding all of Seto's homework triumphantly above his head.  
  
Seto, for his part, looked pretty bored. His expression (one of many that were very easy to read) said, "Whatever. See if I care, you idiot."  
  
Yugi was still writing his Transfiguration essay, a cute confused pout on his face. He was kind of confused by the theory of Vanishing Spells. Nobody had agreed to "rehearse" with him, so he'd decided to wing it at Dumbledore's office. Actually, he'd completely forgotten about it.  
  
Ryou was... somewhere. They'd all decided to meet in front of the Fat Lady at ten to eight anyway.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
So there they were, standing in front of the stone gargoyle again.  
  
"Wait! Listen, I know the password!" Malik said excitedly. "Pocky!"  
  
"Wow. We are so impressed," Seto said dully, stepping onto the rotating staircase after him.  
  
They were once again greeted by Dumbledore, and five minutes later, Yugi was regretting not going over what he was going to say.  
  
"Right. We have Millennium Items, what Voldemort's after, and they have spirits inside them," he started lamely. "That might be why everyone's been after them, because they have a lot of knowledge about ancient magic. The items themselves contain magic, as well. For example, my Millennium Puzzle houses a pharaoh-"  
  
"Former pharaoh," Malik cut in.  
  
"Well, yes. He was the pharaoh 5,000 years ago. He was released when I finished the puzzle a few years ago. His memories from a long time ago might be valuable information to some, like Voldemort."  
  
"Malik hasn't let out the spirit of the Millennium Rod yet. He inherited it, so we don't know if he's the chosen one that can release the spirit, if there is one. There are certain people-like him-that can use a little of an item's power without being the right person."  
  
Then he thought of something else. The true reason to why Voldemort was after the items.  
  
/Of course! I've got to tell him./  
  
"It is said that when all seven items are obtained by one person, that person will have control over the world. It is only a legend, but I'll bet that Voldemort believed it. That's why he's after us! It's not our magic that he wants -"  
  
/Oops.../  
  
"What was that?" asked Dumbledore curiously.  
  
"Well, we can use Shadow magic." Yugi looked apologetically at Malik, and then Yami Bakura (who gave control back to Ryou right after) before continuing.  
  
Dumbledore leaned forward. He had read of these powers somewhere...  
  
'You're an idiot, Yugi,' Malik thought silently, cursing him at the same time.  
  
"It's a very ancient form of magic, from Egypt. Only a few people can harness the full power of the Shadow Realm. Uh, maybe my yami can explain better." There was a slight flash of light, and Yami appeared in Yugi's place.  
  
Dumbledore took note of the slightly crimson eyes, the height difference, spikier hair, and the sudden change of clothes. It seemed that the spirit preferred leather... and buckles.  
  
"The Shadow Realm is a realm that was created over 5,000 years ago by one of the most powerful sorcerers alive. He was my High Priest, but I still can't remember his name. Anyway, the Shadow Realm still exists today. There are monsters - shadows, to be more precise - that feed on your very thoughts and memories. Our Millennium items allow us to use basic spells, and send people's minds to the Shadow Realm. There are several other things that we can do with our Shadow powers. Like-"  
  
"Modifying memories?" asked Dumbledore, with a hint of a twinkle in his eyes.  
  
"Uh, yeah," Yami replied off-handedly. "You must have noticed the slight change in the magical atmosphere. I can sense that you're very powerful."  
  
"Yes, I did notice a tiny bit of change in the air. I believe you performed that spell twice today, am I not correct?"  
  
"Actually, Ryou's yami is the one who did it. One of the Ring's special powers is that. We can also summon and control monsters from the Shadow Realm. There are many magical powers contained within our items. They are the key to many things. This is probably the reason why Voldemort wants them."  
  
"May I see a demonstration?" Dumbledore inquired lightly.  
  
"Um, sure," said Yami, giving Ryou a look with raised eyebrows.  
  
Yami Bakura changed reluctantly.  
  
"I'm me," he said dully.  
  
"That's Yami Bakura. And this," Yami added, looking at Yami Bakura and Malik, "is the Shadow Realm." The room was suddenly immersed in a blackish- bluish-purplish cloudy substance that seemed to have no end. Dumbledore could feel, or sense, rather, things moving everywhere. Around them, between them, all around. But he couldn't see anything.  
  
"Summon a monster, Tomb Robber."  
  
"Man Eater Bug," Yami Bakura said in a bored voice, holding up a card. Dumbledore recognized it to be part of the card game that they were playing the day before. It was called Duel Monsters, or something.  
  
There was a flash of light from the card, and the insect-like creature was suddenly rearing up in front of them, gnashing its teeth and emitting low growls and snarls. It's red eyes flashed menacingly.  
  
"And back," announced Malik, and the office came into view again, as the dark void dematerialized. The Man Eater Bug disappeared along with it.  
  
"It's a bit harder to maintain in this school, because of the new magic," Malik said. "They kind of cancel out each other, I think."  
  
"Can you summon anything you want?" Dumbledore asked. He wasn't sure if the card game was just an example or not.  
  
"Um, basically just the stuff on Duel Monsters cards, because somehow, they're linked with Ancient Egypt," Yugi replied. The others were looking bored now. It was clear that they didn't wish to participate in the conversation anymore.  
  
"Well, I thank you for being truthful with me," said Dumbledore, smiling. "But do try not to harm the students at the school with your powers. I don't think their parents would appreciate it."  
  
"Some of them might," muttered Malik, thinking of most of the Slytherins.  
  
Dumbledore gave them another one of his slight smiles, and then said, "Well, I think that you'd better get back to the Gryffindor common room."  
  
::Do notice that he didn't say Slytherin common room at all.::  
  
As they put their cups of tea down, and stood up to leave, Dumbledore added, "And may I ask you to stay just a bit longer, Mr. Kaiba?"  
  
Seto remained seated while Yugi, Yami Bakura, and Malik made their way to the door.  
  
Yami Bakura was almost at the door, when he turned and his lips curled up in a smirk.  
  
"Oh, I almost forgot," he said casually. "You might be needing this." He tossed Dumbledore's wand back to him. Malik was trying to stifle his laughter, but ended up failing miserably. Instead, he made odd choking noises as they went back down the spiraling staircase.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"I wonder what he wants with Seto," said Yugi, looking back at the entrance to Dumbledore's office. The gargoyle had already frozen into place again.  
  
"Who knows," Malik replied nastily. He was glaring at Yugi, all mirth from Yami Bakura's stunt forgotten. "Smart move back there. Now he knows about our Shadow powers."  
  
"Hey, I made it as short as I could-I didn't tell him EVERYTHING. You should be glad I didn't tell him about your powers. He would've banned controlling minds completely. And we can trust him! Yami told me so!"  
  
"Your stupid yami's been wrong on more things than I can count! How do we know that that Dumby-dore isn't just trying to get a hold of our items?"  
  
"Hey! At least we didn't get in trouble for the duel yesterday!"  
  
"Well now we can't use our powers on any of the students, mind controlling or not, so what does that matter?"  
  
"He said to TRY not to HARM the pathetic mortals, Malik," Yami Bakura said loudly.  
  
"What d'you mean by that?" demanded Malik.  
  
"Well, what if we can't control our own actions? We'd still be trying. And he doesn't really know our definition of harm, does he?" He fingered his Ring with a sinister look on his face.  
  
Yugi did not like the grins on their faces.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Finally! I'm so sorry I didn't get this chapter out earlier! I could never find the time to finish it! Actually, I was preparing for the SAT. I'm only a seventh grader, peoples! I'm sneaking on the computer right now just to upload it onto FF.net.  
  
Seto: You still made me sound really stupid...  
  
Silver Saire: Be quiet, that's totally off topic!  
  
Well I hope you enjoyed it-I'm going to try to type the next chapter faster. Thank you t.a.g.0, my beta-reader. She caught a lot of mistakes and made this chapter a whole lot better.  
  
So, reviews are welcomed, as are suggestions and comments. Thank you, people who've been supporting this story since the beginning. I really appreciate all the encouragement!  
  
Now...to...the next...chapter...  
  
By the way, it's probably going to come out in another two weeks. Don't hurt me!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
1/26 Woohoo! It was snowing on Sunday and now all the roads and driveways and other stuffs in Raleigh are covered in this cool layer of ice. You can just slide all around on it and then fall on your butt! School's been cancelled for two whole days, and I'm happy!  
  
1/28 The snow/ice on the grass is so hard it can support your weight! How cool is that?  
  
1/29 Noooo!!!!! The ice is melting! No school for four days, but the ice is going away!!!! 


	9. More Weird Stuff!

One week later...  
  
***  
  
Two figures were to be seen prowling about the shadows in the dungeons in which the Slytherin common room was located. One was moving stealthily, while the other wasn't doing so great and was glancing back over his shoulder every few minutes.  
  
"You wouldn't do too well in the stealing business," commented the first one, his brown, almost crimson eyes practically glowing in the darkness. "Well, it's just like what I say. Once a pharaoh, always a pharaoh. Why did you wear leather anyway?"  
  
"Be quiet," snapped the second, glaring at his companion. "We could have just used Shadow magic and gone through the Shadow Realm. Or just used our spirit forms so that nobody would see us."  
  
"Yeah, and have our lights sense us? No chance - Ryou'd kill me. Besides, you can do practically nothing in spirit form. You can't even touch most solid objects."  
  
"Whatev-" His mouth was suddenly covered and he was dragged further into the corner of the wall.  
  
"Shh." came the almost inaudible whisper.  
  
Just moments later, Mrs. Norris walked past, ignoring them only because of a weak cloaking spell that Yami had used at the last second.  
  
"You have no guts," muttered a disgusted Yami Bakura, and crept along the wall until they were in front of a damp stone wall. The entrance to the Slytherin common room.  
  
"What's the matter with you?" asked Yami Bakura in annoyance, looking back at Yami. He had gone rigid and hadn't moved at all. "You do want to get revenge, don't you?"  
  
"Yugi's awake," Yami answered in a hollow voice.  
  
"So? Scared of your own hikari? He probably woke up 'cause you used that stupid spell. You probably don't even know how to cover your aura during a spell. Just put him back to sleep and hurry up."  
  
Finally, after ten long minutes, they were looking at the wall again.  
  
"Malik said -" Then the hidden panel in the wall slid open, and Malik stood, beaming at them.  
  
"Welcome!" he said cheerily. "We hope that you will enjoy your stay here. Come on in!" He ushered them inside.  
  
"To the left you will see some wonderful decorations that my wonderful fellow Slytherins have put up in celebration of 'We Hate Mudbloods Week.' And on the right, feel free to warm yourself up with the cold coals in the fireplace."  
  
They followed him to a set of stairs. "Now we will enter the sixth year girls' territory. Feel free to levitate yourself with Shadow Magic so that you won't get killed trying to get up the staircase. Hint hint, it might save you a bit of time. Don't forget to hide all traces of spells unless you want your hikaris to sense you. We're getting quite powerful, you know."  
  
Yami Bakura leaned over and muttered something in Malik's ear.  
  
"And if you don't know how, we'll help you." He and Yami Bakura exchanged a look that Yami couldn't read. Yami Bakura just rolled his eyes. He touched two of his fingers to Yami's forehead and chanted some words. "That should hide your powers for about 30 minutes," said Malik. "Ready, everyone? Then up we go!"  
  
They ascended, or rather, floated on black, purply fog platforms, up to the correct door.  
  
"Now would be an absolutely fantastic time to use your Shadow Magic to go through the door!"  
  
They were on the other side of the door now, looking at five identical beds with green and silver bed hangings all drawn up.  
  
"There's your target," said Malik, closing his eyes and yawning. He was pointing at the bed in the center of the arrangement. "You may now begin whatever you like with the specimen. Begin now. Have fun." He curled up on the floor and started snoring.  
  
"Ah, revenge is so sweet."  
  
Fifteen minutes later they all three were standing in front of the 'Death to Muggles' club notice board.  
  
"Let me sleep in your dormitory? The nice red and gold Gryffindor one?" pleaded Malik.  
  
"No."  
  
Malik turned to the other one. "Pwease, Yami-wami?"  
  
"Sorry. You can come over first thing tomorrow."  
  
Malik pouted, and then said sulkily, "Fine, you meanie butts. You've had your moment, now I'm going back to bed. You still owe me big, though."  
  
He rubbed his eyes, and then levitated up to his own dormitory. There was just a slight hint of purplish-blackish-bluish fog around his outline.  
  
"He doesn't realize that he's floating, does he? He must be at least four inches above the ground."  
  
"Nah, he's just tired. It's kind of an instinct that causes him to do that. Let's go."  
  
They were on their way back to the Gryffindor common room. Yami Bakura was keeping to the shadows from habit, but Yami was walking in plain sight. They didn't notice this, of course, because they were too busy bickering over some pointless topics.  
  
"No, but a plush is still a plush! It's not like the inside changes-"  
  
"-Popsicles aren't dangerous! Ice cream is!"  
  
"You idiot. Everyone knows that flashlights are radioactive-"  
  
"They are not!"  
  
"-No, boxers are evil!"  
  
There was a sigh of frustration, then a gasp of terror.  
  
"Who's there?" someone had growled out of the darkness. Footsteps were coming closer, and the beam of the lamp was almost upon Yami.  
  
I know what some of you are thinking. 'Run, Yami, run! Run like the wind!' Or something like that, right? Anyway, he couldn't run. Yup, he was paralyzed, just stuck there. Like a deer in headlights. Actually, exactly like a deer in headlights. Let's just say that he wasn't used to that kind of thing.  
  
The light was two inches away from Yami's form, when he felt someone grab his hand and swiftly lead him along a secret passageway behind a tapestry of exactly how Frank the Frank got executed. He was guided through a series of confusing turns, weaving in and out of pillars and sets of armor, and escorted through countless sets of doors.  
  
They were suddenly on the seventh floor. He didn't know why, but the danger of Filch was gone, and they were standing right in front of the corridor where the Fat Lady was.  
  
"You okay? Hello, Earth to Pharaoh-dude!"  
  
Yami just looked at Yami Bakura strangely.  
  
"Why,,,..?"  
  
Yami Bakura shrugged. "Everyone needs to change at some point, right? You were looking like you were about to die - guess you just weren't used to that kind of stuff. And... I was just feeling friendly or something."  
  
Oddly enough, he didn't say or mention anything about the incident. He didn't make fun of Yami at all.  
  
Yami smiled, slinging his arm around the other's shoulders like a friend would. Yami Bakura only stiffened a little, then relaxed.  
  
"You know what, Tomb Robber?" Yami said, as they walked up to the Fat Lady, "You're okay. There's hope for you yet." (At this point, Yami Bakura rolled his eyes) "Turn into spirit form, I'm feeling risky right now. Besides, I don't want to listen to the Fat Lady's lecture."  
  
Yami Bakura raised his eyebrows, but complied, and together, they floated into the Gryffindor common room.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Don't wake him up! He looks so kawai!" Who was that? He definitely recognized the voice...  
  
"Hai, so does Yami-wami!" Whispered someone with glee. There was a chorus of murmurs agreeing with him.  
  
"They must have forgotten to get back into the items," mused another voice.  
  
"Good morning, everyone! Where's Seto?" This voice was different, a girl's voice.  
  
"SHHH!!!" came three different people all at once. There was a shuffling of bodies to hide him.  
  
Yami Bakura didn't even bother opening his eyes. He just transported himself into his soul room to get some more rest. Actually, he went into Ryou's soul room, because the bed was nicer. But he needed the sleep, anyway. After all, they had been out until nearly three the previous night and he usually slept quite a lot during the day.  
  
"Umm... So what's going on, guys?" asked Hermione. Behind her were Ron and Harry. They had decided to put 'Operation Get Closer To New Students So That We Can Find Out More About Their Weird Ways' into action. It was just too bad there were only two vowels in the whole thing. They couldn't make a secret acronym for it. (By the way, it would've been Operation G.C.T.N.S.S.T.W.C.F.O.M.A.T.W.W. - Not exactly something that you'd want to remember.)  
  
"Nothing," Yugi lied, looking up at them with cute puppy eyes. Whoever first said that he was innocent obviously didn't know him that well.  
  
"We were just talking about...uh...our friends! Yeah, that's it," said Malik.  
  
"Come to think of it, how are Joey and Tea doing?" asked Ryou. "We haven't heard from them at all yet. Yugi, your grandfather is supposed to be sending their letters to us, right?"  
  
"Well, that could be another problem." Yugi looked sheepishly at the others. "He might not have figured out what to do with Keket. I sent her to him a couple of days ago. She should be back, right?" The shrieks of fan girls told them of a certain someone approaching. "Oh, hi Seto. Where've you been?"  
  
Seto had just walked in, with a grim expression on his face. He ignored them completely and gathered up all his homework, then exited the dormitory. They could hear the fangirls again. The sound soon faded, they had followed Seto out of the common room.  
  
"Weird," commented Ron.  
  
"Yeah. Let's just hope that he's only in one of his mood swings and that it's not something serious," said Malik. "His mind sure felt tense. Maybe something came up at the company."  
  
"Uh, what did you just mean by 'his mind felt tense'?" asked Harry, springing at the chance. He hoped that he sounded uncertain.  
  
"Oh, that," Malik said, glancing at Yugi and Ryou. "We're all kind of close, so it's like we can almost feel what someone else is thinking. Let's go down and eat - I'm hungry." And the discussion was closed, just like that.  
  
They left breakfast early, because of some commotion near the huge doors that led to the outside grounds. An announcement had been made not to exit the school earlier that day, and many students were peering out of windows or trying to sneak a look through the main doors. Finally, Professor McGonagall had to shoo them away, threatening to give the next student to open the doors a week's worth of detentions.  
  
Even so, every available window was occupied by at least ten students. The six made a break for the Gryffindor common room, which was blessedly empty. Malik sealed the portrait hole with some kind of spell that they didn't recognize.  
  
"You sure you're allowed to do that, mate?" asked Ron.  
  
"Who cares. They've already sealed all the other windows. If they get up here, we won't find out what Seto's doing," Malik replied, and Yugi and Ryou knew at once that he had probed McGonagall's mind upon passing.  
  
"Come here, you guys," Harry said suddenly. He was looking intently at something down on the grounds. They all rushed to the window and gazed outside.  
  
The view was normal enough...well, as normal as it could get with a huge field of bare dirt, still left over from their duel. The Forbidden Forest looked even more menacing, even with half of the trees gone. The lake was still only half full, there still wasn't a single blade of grass to be seen, and the absence of the many trees that usually dotted the green landscape made the grounds seem bare and empty.  
  
In the middle of it all stood Seto. His eyes were closed in concentration. Nefertari was at his shoulder.  
  
"The ground...." Hermione gasped.  
  
The ground was rumbling, dirt clods were flying straight up several feet. It was as if something was tossing it up. Dead roots, little pebbles, and branches were also being blown away. If anybody had been out there unprotected, they would have ended up with a lot or cuts and gashes. There was some kind of transparent bubble around Seto, though, leaving him perfectly safe. Only at a certain angle could they see a flicker of blue sparks dance around the frame. The dirt and other rubble just rebounded off it, leaving little blue ripples where it made contact.  
  
It took them a while to realize that Malik was struggling with his Millennium Rod. It was glowing and was trying to float out of Malik's grasp. Finally, he flung it under a huge stack of books and rushed back to the others.  
  
"Damn item, I have no idea what's been wrong...it's been acting up lately...look at the grass!"  
  
No sooner had he said those words, a loud roaring filled their ears.  
  
Now little blades of grass were shooting up from the ground. It was like they were watching time fast forward. The grass gradually filled the whole expanse of brown ground, a huge storm cloud billowed in and started dumping rain onto everything while lightning flashed and thunder boomed, then went away just as fast as it had come. Saplings sprouted everywhere. They watched the young trees' branches lengthen and fill up with leaves. A second round of rain came and went. Flowers were blooming everywhere now. The lake was almost full. The Forbidden Forest's trees had grown so much that they were once again the dark old trees.  
  
"Seto's doing all this," Yugi cried out over the noise. They all looked over at Seto again. It seemed impossible that he was behind this extraordinary feat, yet it was true.  
  
During all this chaos the blue sphere had repelled everything. There were so many blue ripples on it they could just barely see Seto through the near translucent layer of the force field.  
  
Finally, it all ended. The sound and wind dissipated, the sun came out. The lake was full with sparkling water, birds were singing on the trees, and there were still drops of dew on the grass. It was as if nothing had happened at all. Seto fell down onto his knees and the shield flickered, then vanished. Nefertari gave him an awkward push, but he didn't get up.  
  
"There's no way... how could he have gotten so much power?" asked Yami Bakura.  
  
"It's anyone's guess," said Yami. Then he noticed someone exiting the castle. It was Dumbledore, and he was making his way towards Seto with his wand stretched out. A beam of white light hit Seto, and he slumped forward.  
  
"A resting spell infused with sleep," muttered Yami.  
  
"Wait! I'll bet Dumbledore was training him for this!" said Ron excitedly. "That's why he was disappearing to Dumbledore for the past three weeks!"  
  
"But that could've killed him," said Malik, retrieving his Millennium Rod from under the stack of books. "That much power can easily overcome an ordinary mage."  
  
"What if he isn't..." said Harry slowly. Yami, Yami Bakura, and Malik exchanged a dark look, but said nothing.  
  
"But that's just not like Dumbledore!" Hermione said in frustration. "He'd never put any student in danger."  
  
"She's right," said Harry. He looked at Yami, Yami Bakura, and Malik. "You know Seto the best, what do you think happened?"  
  
"I'll bet the stupid fool wanted to do this," said Yami quietly, almost to himself. "It's just like him. He likes pushing himself."  
  
"Ack! I'm so confused!" exclaimed Malik. "Why don't we just ask him ourselves, he's coming up anyway!"  
  
"What?" they said in disbelief, looking at Malik.  
  
"Yah, you heard me! They're coming up here right now, and if they catch us as the ones locking the portrait hole, we're going to be in a whole lot of trouble, folks!"  
  
"They probably didn't come to check because of the other crowd control problems," said Yami Bakura, glancing across the room at the entrance to the common room. He punched out his hand and sent out an unlocking spell.  
  
"Quick, up to the dormitories, pretend that we were doing something else the whole time!" instructed Harry.  
  
::That's got to be the stupidest idea I've ever heard...::  
  
All the same, they frantically bolted up to the boy's dormitories. Hermione dived behind a curtain, while the rest of them flopped down on their beds. Ryou, Yugi, and Malik were pretending to show Harry and Ron how to duel when they heard voices coming up the stairs. Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey walked up, with Seto suspended in midair, unconscious. Nefertari was following them agitatedly.  
  
"Oh no, what happened to Seto-kun?" asked Yugi worriedly. He was VERY good at acting, too.  
  
"He just needs rest," said Dumbledore reassuringly, but he didn't answer Yugi's original question.  
  
They gently laid Seto down on his bed.  
  
"Are you quite sure that you don't want him in the Hospital Wing, Albus?" asked Madam Pomfrey, fluttering around Seto and tucking the covers in.  
  
"Yes, Poppy. I don't want the other students disturbing him. You may go now, I'm sure that his friends will take good care of him." Dumbledore turned and looked at the rest of them.  
  
"As you may have figured out already, Seto here has been under my instruction for the first few weeks here are Hogwarts. He's already exhausted all of his physical and mental capabilities, and needs to rest for while. Please do not question Seto when he wakes. He does not need to be put under any more strain."  
  
He saw the guilty look that they shared, and then said, "Yes, I am aware that you have witnessed what just happened outside. He does not wish for his younger brother to know anything about this either. Please refrain from speaking about it to the other students or talking when you might be overheard. You will find out everything soon, but for the time being, be patient. As for you two," he said, surveying Ron and Harry, "it is up to them to decide about revealing more." That was all he said. On the way to the staircase where Madam Pomfrey was waiting, he gave Yugi, Ryou, and Malik a knowing look.  
  
Hermione came out of her hiding place and rushed to the bed in which Seto lay. Nefertari was now singing bits of phoenix song, and they were calmed by the warming melody.  
  
"He looks so... vulnerable," whispered Hermione. "Nothing like when he's awake."  
  
It was true. Seto looked completely unguarded. His face was peaceful, not expecting anything. Dark lashes cast long shadows over his face, making him look even more tired than usual.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
It was only a matter of time before the mad fan girls realized that Seto hadn't been in any of his classes that day. They had stormed up, or tried to, to the Gryffindor boy's dormitories during their lunch break. Yami, Malik, and Yami Bakura put another simple illusion up. This one allowed anyone but the fan girls get into the dorm normally. As for the fan girls, they would run into an endless corridor until someone figured out that it would be impossible to get to Seto. As an added bonus, all sound was filtered, and the shrieks of crazy fans just didn't make it through the test.  
  
"Boy, I'm sure glad that you three know all these cool spells," said Ron. He checked the door again. They could see out, but the fan girls couldn't see in. There was still a mob of around twenty people out there. He didn't even know how the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff people had gotten into the Gryffindor common room.  
  
"The next thing you know they'll be scaling the castle walls," commented Harry. His mind felt a lot better, due to yet another miracle spell of Yugi's. Everything was all cleared up and orderly up in his head. They had been dismissed from their classes by Dumbledore to watch over Seto for the day.  
  
Then they heard the scraping of a grappling hook.  
  
"No. Way," said Ron in disbelief. He ran to the window, opened it, and nearly got his eye poked out. "There's another crowd of people! When will they stop?"  
  
"Get outta the way," ordered Yami Bakura through a mouthful of sharp- looking throwing knives.  
  
"No, Ryou," gasped Hermione. "You can't throw those at them!"  
  
:'Kura! No! If you do that, then... then I won't like you anymore!:  
  
::Fine, I won't throw knives.:: The knives disappeared.  
  
But before Ryou could stop him again, Yami Bakura had flung a mass of Shadow magic out of the window. The purplish bluish blackish cloud floated down, engulfing everyone in its way. It deposited them on the newly grown grass just outside of the Forbidden Forest. There was mass unconsciousness.  
  
"Let's see what kind of stuff happens to them," grinned Yami Bakura evilly.  
  
"You can't do that, Bakura," said Yami. He made as if to transport them back, but then growled and looked at Yami Bakura.  
  
"Hah. There's still so much more that you don't know about magic. I thought you were supposed to know more than us, Pha-"  
  
:Bakura! Be careful...:  
  
"Yeah, well, anyway, I disabled you. Just forget about all of it."  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione gave each other puzzled looks, but they ignored them.  
  
"Frankly, I'm surprised they've even thought of attacking the dormitories," said Malik, yawning. "I didn't know fan girls were that smart. The ones stalking me are always pretty stupid."  
  
"Er, do all of you have these fan girls following you?" asked Ron.  
  
"Yup. People like me because I'm a sexy, gorgeous demigod; they go for Ryou 'cause he looks like he's just an innocent boy. You know, nice chocolate eyes, innocent posture, sissy choices for clothing - hmm... better make that a very feminine boy-"  
  
"Shut up," said Yami Bakura, glaring at Malik.  
  
"Okay, okay, he's very attractive, too. Just positively stunning, I tell you, with his long white hair, fair complexion, and girly ways. Anyway, Yugi's just normal. People like him because he's good at duel monsters and can get cuter than a chibi."  
  
"Right..." There was an uncomfortable silence. Uncomfortable for Harry, Hermione, and Ron, at least. Trying to find out more about the new students was harder then they'd thought.  
  
"So, how're you doing in Slytherin, Malik?" asked Hermione, breaking the silence. She'd noticed that he never talked about what he did in Slytherin. She wasn't even sure if he even did anything with them.  
  
Malik just shrugged.  
  
"They're all idiots." Then he thought for a moment. ". well, maybe not all of them. There's this one kid who seems okay. He's in our year. We've had a few chats and tell each other stuff. Actually, I think we're kind of friends. He doesn't seem very popular with the other Slytherins."  
  
At this, Yami raised an eyebrow. Malik had made a friend? Now there was one for the record books.  
  
/Stop it, Yami! Malik's nice!/  
  
//.no comment on that.//  
  
/Really! Gosh, won't anybody listen to me?/  
  
"Anywhoosle," Malik started to continue, and all of them sniggered, spirits included.  
  
"What? Haven't you ever heard me say 'anywhoosle' before? It's a common word, you know!" Malik said indignantly.  
  
"Go on, we're sorry," said Hermione, being the first one to compose herself.  
  
Malik humphed.  
  
"As I was saying. er. what was I saying again?"  
  
"You were talking about your new friend," Ryou supplied.  
  
"Oh yeah! Anywhoosle," and this time nobody sniggered, "his name's Draco Malfoy."  
  
Malik crossed his arms, looking pleased with himself.  
  
"What?!?!?!" exclaimed Ron.  
  
"Malfoy's your new pal? How can anybody even like that creep?"  
  
"He's alright, in my opinion," said Malik casually. "Has his head on straight, and doesn't think he's better than anyone else just because he's in the snake thingy. What was it again? Slythery, right? Slythingly, Slithers, Slythering, Sly..."  
  
"How can...Malfoy...what..." Ron was in shock, while Malik was still trying to figure out how to say his house name.  
  
"Of course! He's nice!"  
  
"Nice?" Yami snorted. "You've never called anyone nice before."  
  
"Exactly," Malik answered. "Here, I'll introduce you to him sometime. Right now...I'm hungry. Let's go eat lunch."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Strange, huh? Well, I typed it in record time, so sorry for the lameness. I had to end the chapter rather abruptly. Check back later and I might have actually completed the chapter! Please tell me if I made any mistakes or anything, 'kay?  
  
Thank you everyone who reviewed for the last chapter! It wasn't as much as I'd expected, but at least I got some reviews! I think I'll try to make it to 110 before I update again, so... bye for now! 


	10. Yami and Hikari

I'm sorry it took so long! And... I'm sorry for being so childish. Don't forget, I'm only 13! (turned thirteen February 27 () But here's the next chapter!  
  
Everyone who reviewed, even though there wasn't a real chapter/reviewed for every chapter — thank you so much! I think I'll do a Reply to Reviewers thingy sometime. But if you don't like them, just tell me, and I won't. I'll probably just list all of the special people who decided to review. Uh, enough talking. On to... er... which chapter is this?  
  
Uh, on to Chapter Ten!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Okay. This is Draco-kun, you guys. Draco, this is Harry, Ron, and Hermione." Silence. "Um, aren't you going to shake hands or anything? What's the matter with you?"  
  
Yugi and Ryou walked into the Great Hall. They spotted the group just standing around and came towards them.  
  
"Oh, hello. You must be Draco-kun. I'm Ryou. It's nice to meet you," said Ryou immediately, offering a smile. After all, he was the nice polite one, right?  
  
Draco nodded, shaking Ryou's hand. "Likewise." He smiled back. Sincerely.  
  
"Hi Draco. I'm Yugi," said Yugi, slightly bowing. "Oh, yeah. We're supposed to shake hands here, aren't we? Sorry." He laughed sheepishly, and then shook Draco's hand.  
  
"See? They're being nice, why can't you?" Malik turned and asked the three still standing and gaping.  
  
"Uh, hey Malfoy," Harry said tentatively.  
  
"Don't call him that! It's Draco, not Malfoy. How impolite!"  
  
"How are you doing, Draco?" asked Hermione.  
  
"I'm fine, how're you?" he replied without a moment's hesitation.  
  
Malik turned to Ron expectantly. He mumbled hello and then turned away.  
  
"Well, I suppose that's got to do for now. Can't really expect him to warm up to him that fast," Malik sighed, but then brightened up. He spun around to look at Draco again.  
  
"You can meet Seto later, Draco – I'm sure you'll like him too! You know, I would prefer to go outside and talk, but I think we're going to be late for McGonagall. See you later, Draco!"  
  
"I don't get it," said Harry, once they were out of earshot. "How did he change? It's like he's a totally different person."  
  
"Yeah, it's great, isn't it? He's really nice and polite and everything — and he's actually acting on his own free will now!" Malik said happily.  
  
/Wait. Do you know what that means, Yami?/  
  
//That he was being controlled by someone somehow? Probably. But you never know.//  
  
"It's actually quite strange, you know," said Malik. "He's nice and all, but almost nobody seems to like him. He was all alone until I came."  
  
'All alone, just like me....' Came a voice inside his head for a fleeting moment. He quickly brushed it away.  
  
"What's wrong, Malik?" asked Ryou. He had seen the brief look of pain on Malik's face.  
  
"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Malik said cheerily, putting a big smile on and striding forward.  
  
He missed his yami. He needed him. There was nothing else to it. Mariku was his dark, he the light. It just wasn't right for darkness and light to be apart from each other.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"You're right," Malik admitted a little while later. Yami Bakura and Yami had pulled him into a spare classroom and demanded answers. He glared at them. "Somebody has been controlling him for... oh, let's say, the past 10 fucking years! Don't you understand? Someone's been taking away his thoughts and replacing them! His heart, his memories, his dreams... they haven't been his true feelings ever since he could think for himself!"  
  
Malik looked down. "The way he acts, his very personality, has been tampered with. It wasn't right. He didn't deserve it — his soul is pure. I had to sever the connection."  
  
"So...?" questioned Yami.  
  
"I'm working on it," Malik mumbled. "He hasn't forgotten the individuals that he's met in the past. The only problem is getting them to actually like him. He's trying to change their feelings towards him, but he can't just say, 'Oh, yeah. I wasn't acting on my own free will for the past five years I've known you. I was being controlled by the Imperius Curse, but that's all gone. Want to be friends now?,' can he? You saw how those Gryffindors acted when they met him again."  
  
"Well, who was doing it then?" Yami Bakura asked, folding his arms. "Who could hate a child that much to take total control over his life?"  
  
"His... father."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Let me get this straight. Draco-kun's father was controlling him with a wizard spell, the Imperius Curse. It was just a weak incantation, but altered his thoughts and feelings and actions." Yugi was looking disbelievingly at Malik, who was leaning on a bedpost. They'd moved their conversation up to the Gryffindor dormitories, as Harry and Ron were visiting Hagrid.  
  
"Imagine how he must have felt when he was released," said Ryou softly. "Having people hate him for things that he didn't want to do. Having even done those very tasks, and having even more expectations." He looked up. "I trust his father doesn't know that his control has been disconnected?"  
  
"No, he hasn't realized yet. This was how the spell worked. It was only a modified version of the Imperius Curse. Lighter, I expect. Draco-kun was controlled by his own father's wishes for him."  
  
"But why? He's his own child!" cried Yugi. "I can't imagine anybody being so cruel."  
  
"Trust me, there are people out there like that," said a weak voice from the bed next to him. Seto was sitting up, rubbing his head and looking slightly disoriented. He looked around as he remembered.  
  
"Oh yeah." He flopped back down.  
  
"Um, are you okay, Seto-kun?" asked Yugi carefully.  
  
"Yes. What happened to me after that anyway?"  
  
"Dumbledore happened to you," said Yami Bakura, smirking.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Seto's recovery was faster than expected. He insisted on going to all of his classes the next day. Dumbledore said that his will was very powerful, and that might have been what had overcome his illness. Mokuba was, thankfully, not too aware of what had happened or Seto's weakness. This might have been because of all the sugar that Malik gave him, though....  
  
"Harry!"  
  
Harry sighed again, and then asked, "Yes, what is it?" even though he already knew what it was going to be about.  
  
Over the following days, Harry had been bombarded with questions about the DA.  
  
"Are you going to start it up again, mate?"  
  
"Can new people join?"  
  
"Hey, Harry, d'you think now that Dumbledore's back we can actually hold the sessions somewhere a bit bigger?"  
  
"Has he given his approval yet?"  
  
These did bring up more things to do. The first thing was to get Dumbledore to say yes, which he probably would. Next was to recruit new members. Then they had to find another place to meet. All of this wouldn't happen until after the O.W.L.s, though, as Harry already told them.  
  
"What is the DA, anywho?" asked Malik during lunch that day, munching on a celery stick.  
  
"It stands for Dumbledore's Army," said Hermione. "We started it secretly last year to fight against Voldemort. Our DADA professor wasn't too instructive, so we learned all sorts of spells on our own. Harry was our teacher, in a sense. That's why –"  
  
"Everyone's stalking me?" finished Harry as he sat down next to her.  
  
"Precisely. You could probably recruit a few assistants this year, Harry, to lighten the load." She scanned through the index of the heavy looking book she had been reading, marking many with her wand. "I've already found tons of new jinxes that we can use."  
  
"Yeah, okay, whatever," said Harry distractedly. His attention was on Seto, who was trying to pry off several fan girls without avail. He finally took out his wand and froze all of them with the Full Body Bind.  
  
"You should have killed them," commented Malik. "That way they never would have bothered you again. Say, where are Yugi and Ryou?"  
  
"I think you already know," said Seto, collapsing onto the bench beside Mokuba.  
  
"Oh, you mean they're still upstairs f—"  
  
"Just shut up already," the other snapped. "Don't use such language in front of my little brother."  
  
"'Kay," said Malik weakly, looking at the sparking wand still in Seto's hand. He didn't want to get blown up by an annoyed CEO.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Malik decided to spend the night in Gryffindor tower that night. The truth was, he was being crushed by grief. There was almost no way to communicate with his yami because of the distance separating them. He felt incomplete, not whole — which was, in theory, true.  
  
He snuck up there at around midnight and just sat in front of the dying embers, staring at the flickering flames.  
  
Harry was going down to the common room to get something that he'd left there when he heard low voices.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"I... I miss him."  
  
He peeked around the corner to see Malik curled up on the couch hugging his legs to his chest, gazing deep into the fire. There were silent tears running down his face. He looked like a five year old. Yami Bakura was standing beside him. Slowly, almost hesitantly, he put a hand on Malik's shoulder.  
  
"He'll be here soon."  
  
Malik started to nod, but then lost control completely. With a sob, he launched himself at Yami Bakura, clutching at his shirt and crying into his shoulder.  
  
"I feel like a big chunk of me is missing," he cried. "I can't do anything anymore." He looked up at Yami Bakura, who was looking stunned. "He's my darkness — you understand, don't you? Like you and Ryou. Light and dark, inseparable."  
  
Yami Bakura's look softened. "You're exactly right," he said gently, pulling Malik into a comforting hold. "You are incomplete without him, as he is without you. Without each other, you won't be able to exist. You shouldn't be apart, for if you are, it's like a part of you has died." Yami Bakura rested his chin on the light blond tresses and Malik quieted, sniffing occasionally. He relaxed into Yami Bakura's chest. He was warm, just like Mariku always was.  
  
"He'll be back soon," Yami Bakura promised again.  
  
Harry quietly snuck back up, all intentions of retrieving his bag forgotten. After a while of lying awake in bed, he decided that some things were best left alone. He wouldn't mention what he saw to anybody.  
  
Malik was back to normal the next week. But Harry knew that it was all a façade. This person that he had been talking about was very important to him. He had described him as his dark, like a part of him. Harry stopped wondering about it. Like he'd decided before, there were some things that he didn't have to meddle in. He'd learned that much from the previous years.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The next few weeks passed without any incident, unless you count Yami Bakura and Malik blowing up six classrooms, erasing McGonagall's memory fourteen times (the other teachers' memories were modified over twelve times), and scaring half of the student body by routinely trying to kill each other for fun and doing other... stuff. But that was just normal, wasn't it?  
  
Two weeks before the fifth years were to take their O.W.L.s again, people started freaking out. The teachers were giving more reviews and assigning piles of homework. The only ones who seemed to be unfazed were Seto, Malik, Yugi, and Ryou.  
  
Lupin was bringing in more dark creatures to Defense Against the Dark Arts classes and requiring the students to battle them.  
  
"Now, today, I thought that we should review on boggarts," he said one day. "I have one in this suitcase," at this, he gestured towards a battered looking suitcase on the desk beside him, "for you to practice on. Please move around, that's it. Okay, do you all remember what to do? Neville, will you please demonstrate so that our new students can see?"  
  
Neville walked up. Harry had to admit, Neville had changed a lot over the past year. He was getting a lot better at magic, and had grown more confident with himself.  
  
Lupin undid the clasps on the suitcase, and someone stepped out. It was not Snape, as it was in his third year, but a woman with heavily lidded eyes. Bellatrix Lestrange stood before the class, glowering at everybody. Lupin's eyes widened in surprise. The rest of the class was perplexed. Then, Bellatrix raised her wand, and shrieked, "Cru—"  
  
But Neville was ready for her. "Riddikulus!" he cried. Bellatrix suddenly clutched at her throat. Her voice was gone. Her wand had snapped in half, and then she toppled onto the floor, under the Full Body Bind.  
  
Neville glared at her some more, and then...  
  
"Dean!" Lupin shouted, and Dean stepped forward.  
  
And then, the door creaked open. It was Ryou. He started apologizing for being late but stopped as he caught sight of the boggart. It had begun to move towards Ryou, distracted by the newcomer.  
  
The boggart had turned into somebody with white hair that stuck out; somebody with slanted cold brown eyes; somebody also with the Millennium Ring around his neck. The class was confused once more. Who was this person? Malik, Seto, and Yugi were looking on worriedly.  
  
The Yami Bakura boggart advanced on Ryou, a look of malice on his face.  
  
"How are you doing, weakling hikari?" he asked in a sinister voice. Shivers ran up Harry's spine. This was that other Ryou, he was sure of it. The same, cold, red-brown eyes, the same creepy voice.  
  
The boggart drew out a dagger with a shining silver blade and continued to step closer to Ryou.  
  
Ryou whimpered and backed up against the wall. His books lay on the floor, forgotten, as he was cornered.  
  
"No," he whispered. "You said that you wouldn't, you promised!"  
  
:Bakura!: he mentally cried. He didn't know what made him do it, it was more like instinct. Bakura was right in front of him, yet he could feel him in his soul room. All of it happened so suddenly that he didn't have time to register in his brain that the creature was a boggart. Yami Bakura, who had been taking a nap in his soul room, awoke with a start. He felt fear and confusion through their link, and... hurt?  
  
::Ryou, Ryou! RYOU! What's happening?:: Ryou didn't answer.  
  
::That's not me, Ryou! I would never do that again, stop it Ryou!:: Ryou was still silent. Fear was overpowering everything else. He was numb, he couldn't think.  
  
Yami Bakura threw caution to the winds, and materialized in front of Ryou. Ryou was looking at Yami Bakura as if he didn't trust him either. All the happy memories with his yami were forgotten as he remembered all the bad memories.  
  
"No...." he whispered again. "Not again...."  
  
Yami Bakura took his chances, and crushed his mouth against Ryou's in a desperate attempt to bring him back to reality.  
  
It worked, as Ryou started responding to the familiar touch. His eyes closed as he submitted himself to Yami Bakura, relaxing into his touch.  
  
::It's okay, Ryou. I'm here now.::  
  
He remembered. Everything came flooding back to him as the initial shock wore off. Nothing mattered except that they were together again.  
  
:Bakura...: he sighed happily.  
  
Yami Bakura wove a spell of deep, dreamless sleep with peace and calm, and cast it over Ryou. He was instantly asleep, not to awaken until the spell caster wished him to.  
  
The boggart was very confused during the two minutes that this all happened. He growled to get their attention. Yami Bakura, with Ryou still in his arms, turned. He swore as he saw himself again, set Ryou down, and threw the Ring to Malik. Malik caught it and looked questioningly at Yami Bakura.  
  
"I need you to erase their memories of this after I deal with this thing," he instructed him.  
  
"I'll help," said Seto, jumping forward with his wand raised.  
  
Yami Bakura nodded his thanks, and raised his hands to form a ball of dark energy. The boggart was a creature of mediocre power, but his own skills were a bit rusty. He glanced at it, half expecting to see himself again, but with a sharp crack, the boggart transformed into something that made him recoil just a little.  
  
Ryou was lying before him, dead, or almost dying. He was chalk white and covered in blood, with huge gashes all over his frail body. The dark liquid contrasted horribly well with his pale skin, and his hair was stained red. Even so, his face still looked angelic. His clothes were slashed open on some parts, and it looked like several of his bones were broken.  
  
//Not real, this isn't real.//  
  
There were gasps, but he did not know where they were from, the group of people behind him, the rest of the class, or even himself. All of his attention was focused to banishing this creature, which dug out his worst fear and turned it into reality. Although some little part of his mind was thinking how grateful he was that Ryou wasn't seeing it, most of his energy and will was used to power the sphere of dark light.  
  
He was frustrated at how much of his power was blocked again, until he felt someone – no, two people — helping. More of this told him that both Yami and Seto were giving power to him. Their energy signatures were unmistakable. The glowing sphere of energy pulsed with power, and Yami Bakura took aim.  
  
He shut his eyes and flung the mass of black at the creature on the floor. It shrieked once, and then disappeared as the darkness enveloped it.  
  
He heard someone snap his fingers, and then there was mass unconsciousness all around. They walked out together and headed for the Gryffindor common room. It was a good thing that DADA was the last class that they had that day — nobody would discover them skipping more classes.  
  
Yami Bakura placed Ryou gently on his four-poster and sat next to him, deep in thought. Sanura jumped up on his lap and mewed, and he absently started stroking her. The others watched him carefully. He was looking down at Ryou with an unreadable expression on his face. He finally closed his eyes with a sigh, and started to fade out, leaving Sanura curled up next to Ryou. She licked his face and pawed his nose gently. He stirred, and then brown eyes blinked open. He sat up with a gasp and clutched his Millennium Ring.  
  
"'Kura! Where is he?"  
  
"He just vanished into his soul room, didn't he?" asked Yugi.  
  
"The door's locked!" said Ryou, distressed.  
  
"You should give him some time alone, I think," said Yami softly. Yugi's transparent form, standing beside him, nodded. Malik still held the Ring in his hand, watching him from the doorway, and Seto looked lost in thought.  
  
"You're right," Ryou agreed. Then, as if he needed to explain, he said, "About the boggart —"  
  
"Later," said Yami firmly. "You need to rest." He thought he already knew the story behind the Yami Bakura boggart, though. He decided not to tell Ryou what the boggart had turned into when it had faced Yami Bakura. Not yet, anyway.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
They soon learned that memory spells weren't always great. Lupin, having forgotten what had happened with the boggart, had managed to find a traggob, which was the opposite of a boggart. This creature showed your greatest desire, and then went in for the kill while you were distracted. Quite a dangerous technique. And somehow, Malik had gotten chosen to go first, in the next Defense Against the Dark Arts class.  
  
"Uh, okay," said Malik, as the rest of the class backed away. He glanced up at Lupin again. "What do I do again?"  
  
"You must concentrate on thinking that the traggob is not real. It is still a dark creature that can do sufficient damage. Then, when you feel that you can banish it completely, use this incantation, 'Reiddikalis!' Be sure not to say 'Riddikulus, or the spell will backfire. If you do it right, the traggob will be weakened, and the next person can step up."  
  
"Alright," said Malik nervously. He hoped that it wouldn't show what he thought it would. But since when had his life ever been too great?  
  
Lupin released the traggob, and his yami was suddenly standing in front of him and smiling at him.  
  
Malik's eyes widened in shock, but then he shut his eyes tight. Mariku was in Egypt. This was a creature trying to hurt him. He must use the spell. But he just couldn't bring himself to do it.  
  
Ha, that was a joke. He was the former leader of the Rare Hunters. He'd controlled and banished so many people he couldn't even count now. He chided himself for turning weak and opened his eyes, ready to use the spell.  
  
But he waited just a moment too long. Mariku was now grinning evilly at him, less than a foot away. A gleaming dagger was out and he struck. It drove into Malik's left arm, leaving a freely bleeding gash, making his arm almost completely useless.  
  
Lupin was stunned. He watched, as if in a trance, as the blood splattered all over the ground. Never before had a traggob hurt anyone more than just a few bruises. After all, most of the people in the world had deepest desires that weren't so dangerous, right? The traggob could only use weapons or tools that its current form carried. This wasn't supposed to be happening. Who was this traggob resembling? Lupin made as if to rush in and stop the creature, but found himself held back by Yami.  
  
"It's his battle," he said. "Let's see what he does."  
  
Malik had grown enraged. The attack had brought him back to his senses. Ignoring the dull pain in his arm and the steady dripping of his blood, he said angrily, "How dare you use Mariku's form! I'll make you pay!"  
  
The Mariku traggob slashed again, but Malik was faster. He threw his wand aside (Seto caught it), drew his own dagger, which was almost identical to Mariku's, and Shadow Magic immediately flowed into the blade. The silver- gold point was bathed in what looked like black and purple fire. He quickly blocked the attack. For a moment they crossed blades, then came out in a stalemate. Oh well, he wouldn't expect less from his darker side. Too bad the traggob represented his strength and skills as well. This would actually be a bit of a challenge.  
  
Malik smirked as he thought of one thing the traggob didn't have access to. Mariku's magic. The flames grew larger as his feelings grew and the monster recoiled. It growled, and some of Mariku's features shifted. He drew a second dagger. Malik couldn't, as his left arm was hanging uselessly at his side, but he courageously prepared himself for the attack, just shielding himself with one weapon. He knew that he was at a severe disadvantage. He concentrated on the monster's weakness and quickly devised a plan. Blades flashed as they fought, and Malik managed to slice the creature more than twice.  
  
The wounds split open for just a second, and then healed at once, spilling no blood, but he knew that its energy was decreasing. He could sense it in the sloppy way that it'd dodged the previous attack. The daggers flashed once more, and Malik pushed with more magic. The flames were flowing down the blade and onto the traggob. The creature was set aflame and shrieked as the magic consumed it. Then the false set of daggers fell to the floor. There were two rubies set into the hilts, exactly like Mariku's.  
  
Malik's gaze was averted to his own pair, which had been made along with Mariku's. There were two amethysts glittering in the hilt. Mariku had chosen them. He'd said that they reminded him of Malik's eyes. Malik looked back down. The twin weapons were also burning. Nothing remained of the troggab now.  
  
"And that's what you get if you get Malik pissed," finished Seto. He was looking at Malik's wounds critically, and Malik reluctantly trudged back to let Seto heal him, shoving his daggers back into where ever he was hiding them and trailing a mass of blood as he went.  
  
There was stunned and awed silence, and then the Gryffindors all broke into applause, even though it was for a Slytherin. They'd never seen such a display and were all very impressed.  
  
Malik grinned, and then looked up at Seto. He was chanting some indistinguishable words under his breath, and then raised his hand above Malik's head, waving it around once. His eyes flashed and eerie light blue, just once, and a wave of pale cerulean light started spreading down from the top, targeting all of Malik's cuts and especially that one gaping wound. Eventually, the light faded, and Malik was left unmarred, save for the bloody and cut up clothes.  
  
Malik raised his eyebrows. "Cool. Thanks, I feel better than ever. But you should really work on repairing clothes as well."  
  
Seto smirked, tossing Malik's wand back to him. "Sorry, it only works on living objects."  
  
"Right," Lupin said shakily. "Class is dismissed for today. Go to Gryffindor tower for the remaining fifteen minutes, please." He took one look at the pool of blood still on the floor and the scorch mark where the traggob had burned to its doom, and headed straight for Dumbledore's office.  
  
"That was bloody amazing!" exclaimed Ron. "Where'd you learn how to fight like that?"  
  
"Oh, one can just pick it up in random places," Malik shrugged, pocketing his wand.  
  
"You know, we could use you in the DA," said Harry thoughtfully. "And all of you guys, as well. Ryou, you're pretty good at fighting, right?"  
  
"Er... yeah."  
  
"Seto's great at healing," Hermione added. "It's really neat where you use all that blue energy and nothing's left after."  
  
They continued discussing plans for the DA while walking to Gryffindor tower. But Ryou's mind was somewhere else. What was he going to do about his yami?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The days whizzed by, and they soon didn't have any time to think about anything else. All they were doing was studying once more. Well, Seto and Malik weren't studying at all, but that was different. It wasn't like Seto needed to, and Malik... let's just say that he still needed to get everything organized and his priorities set straight.  
  
Even Ryou was studying hard, partly to take his mind off things, and partly because he actually wanted to get good grades.  
  
Yami Bakura hadn't spoken to him ever since the day they faced the boggart in Defense Against the Dark Arts, mentally or physically. In fact, he hadn't even seen him at all since that day. Ryou pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind. Normal school or not, he still had to get satisfactory grades.  
  
The day of their first written tests came so suddenly that people were beginning to panic again. Hermione was to be found whacking people with books more now, and even Harry was scanning over his notes whenever he found the time.  
  
Once again, the Great Hall was organized with little tables in neat row. The four house tables were nowhere to be seen, and in the front of the hall stood Professor McGonagall and the hourglass that clocked them.  
  
"You may begin." The hourglass was turned, and they were soon scratching out answers to Potions questions like:  
  
What would you add to remedy an Animalius potion gone wrong?  
  
a) Name the most powerful truth potion there is, and b) tell the properties it has, as well as c) the effects it will have on the subject.  
  
45 minutes into the exam they saw Seto flip back to the very first page and start rereading his answers.  
  
'But we've still got an hour and fifteen minutes to go!' Harry thought frantically. Was Seto done already? He himself was only on the third page out of eight, and he'd skipped a number of questions.  
  
"Well, that wasn't too bad," commented Yugi afterwards. He had finished within the second hour and given up checking the thing, deciding to chat with his yami afterwards. A conversation that had ended up as something that probably shouldn't be mentioned here.  
  
"Yes, it's just too bad that we had the Potions exam first," said Hermione, hurriedly flipping through a thick Ancient Runes textbook. She looked up.  
  
"Aren't you guys going to study for our next test?"  
  
"Well, Hermione, we have a free period, since you are taking one more class that we are," Ron explained, trying to suppress a grin.  
  
"And we don't feel like studying," yawned Malik. He gestured at Yugi, Seto, who were engaged in another duel, and then at Ryou, who had dozed off.  
  
Harry was amused at how little the exchange students cared for their grades, but had to admit, it was fun torturing Hermione.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Seto and Hermione came out of the Arithmancy O.W.L. to find Malik, Yugi, Ryou, Harry, and Ron just exiting the classroom where the written part of their Divination testing took place.  
  
"I'm alright on the theory, but I just can't do the practical," said Ron. "I think I might've scraped an Acceptable on that. Ah, well, it's not like I'll need it in the future."  
  
Hermione was repeatedly bonking herself on the head. "I did number fifty- seven wrong! I forgot to simplify the numerical systic power into an irrapational decimit!"  
  
Harry, who didn't understand a word of her rant, said, "Relax, 'Mione. One wrong answer's not going to hurt your final score!"  
  
She glared at him.  
  
"Well, at least you don't have a practical for Arithmancy," he said, retreating a little.  
  
They headed for their Astronomy theory test.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
On Wednesday, their practical exams began.  
  
Harry made sure he didn't mess up too badly on Charms or Transfiguration this time, as he would need to get into those N.E.W.T. classes to become an Auror.  
  
A notice had been posted up. There would be a ball on Friday, the day that the O.W.L. examinations ended, which also happened to be Halloween. Students in fourth year and up were allowed to attend. Everyone was talking about what they would wear, and who to ask to dance. Girls were giggling every time they passed.  
  
"Ugh. I can't concentrate," Ryou muttered. This was too much. Yami Bakura not talking to him, the O.W.L.s that were right after the other, and now the noise level. His head throbbed painfully. It was all finally taking a toll on him, both physically and emotionally.  
  
He suddenly stopped in his tracks, clutching his head. His bag fell and the books dropped and fell open on the ground. Several inkbottles hit the stone as well, and mercifully some of them stayed intact. There were gasps and many girls rushed to help him.  
  
"No." He was surprised at the shakiness in his own voice. "Stay away," he mumbled, leaning against the wall for support, his eyes shut, taking steadying breaths.  
  
Somebody approached him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Warmth spread from that single spot. It was Seto. Nefertari alighted on his other shoulder, and warmth started to radiate from that spot as well. Ryou didn't move. He let the feeling wash over him and then took a deep breath.  
  
"Shh. This will help." His hair was brushed aside, exposing the back of his neck. The hand lifted off his shoulder to touch two fingertips to the bare skin there. Ryou's eyes flashed open after a second. The headache was gone.  
  
Seto moved away from him to retrieve Ryou's books, placing them in his bag. He cleaned up the broken shards of glass and the ink on the floor with a wave of his hand. New bottles of ink appeared in his other outstretched palm. He also put them in Ryou's bag.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked, handing Ryou his things.  
  
"Yeah. Thanks," Ryou said gratefully, accepting the bag.  
  
"You should go rest," Seto said, frowning, and looking at Ryou's pale face.  
  
"We only have one more examination today. I think I can handle it," he said in his soft voice, looking up at Seto. "Thanks again." A slender hand touched Seto's own for a moment, and then moved away.  
  
The taller teen sighed, shaking his head and watching the other walk to his final exam of the day.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Funnily enough, the theme of the dance was 'The Muggle World.' The Slytherins didn't really like it, but everyone else enjoyed dressing up for it, so it was okay.  
  
Ryou had been reluctant to go. In the end, Malik had forced him.  
  
"You need to have some fun, Ryou! You look like crap!"  
  
"Thanks for the observation," said Ryou dryly.  
  
Even so, he let Malik pick out an outfit for him to wear. He wasn't going with anyone, same with Malik, although according to Malik's statistics, over 20 percent of the female population had asked Ryou, same for Malik. More than 50 percent asked Seto (he declined every single girl, so he was also going as a bachelor), and the rest asked Yugi. After he made sure that everyone knew that he was already taken, they laid off him for a while. Seto, Ryou, and Malik weren't so lucky.  
  
"Are you guys done yet?" Hermione asked, stepping in the boy's dormitories. She was wearing a loose, flowing ball gown made out of a periwinkle blue silky material and had her hair swept up in some kind of fancy style. She wasn't going with anyone, either.  
  
"Dancing just isn't my thing," she'd told them. She was over Viktor Krum, as well. "We're just good friends, nothing more."  
  
"I'll bet most of the stupid 'purebloods,' a.k.a. the Slytherins, won't even know what to wear," Ron said.  
  
"Look who's talking," Harry snorted. Ron's hair was slicked down, but he was wearing jeans and cowboy boots, along with an old black T-shirt. He'd also managed to acquire a bright blue bowtie and fixed it loosely around his neck. It hung in front of a orange and green striped tie that he had tucked into his belt.  
  
"Dumbledore was a bit vague," said Hermione, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "I think any type of Muggle wear will be okay. It doesn't have to be anything dressy. Oh, you look nice, Harry."  
  
Harry'd left his hair as it was, knowing that it wouldn't do any good to try and comb it. He had on a checked dress shirt, and khaki dress pants, with some regular black shoes. He'd gotten the outfit from Seto, who had somehow materialized it out of nowhere. He had to admit that he did like the way he looked, though.  
  
"No, Malik, I will NOT wear these!" Ryou's voice drifted loudly from the bathroom.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
Malik's voice dropped, and they heard quiet murmuring, and then...  
  
"Fine."  
  
A few minutes later the door opened, and Ryou and Malik stepped out. Harry, Ron, and Hermione gaped at them. There was black leather everywhere. Malik had a satisfied smirk on his face. There was a bad boy attitude about him as he leaned against the doorway, crossing his legs, putting a hand on his hips, which were tilted suggestively. His lavender orbs twinkled mischievously.  
  
"So what do you think?"  
  
He was clad in a tight, leather tank top that showed his flawless form, and a bit of golden-tan skin was showing where the top ended. His pants were riding so low on his hips it should be made illegal, and also clung tightly to his frame. Several golden bands decorated his arms, those golden earrings were on again, and a single belt was slung casually on, not doing so well in the holding up pants department, as it was hanging diagonally across his hips. When he tossed his hair back, there were golden glimmers.  
  
Ryou was dressed similarly, standing awkwardly beside Malik, and although he had refused the gold, Malik had come up with something silver for him. There were silver sparkles in his hair, a few silver bands on his arms, but no belts or earrings. The leather accented his thin frame and contrasted with his very pale skin. He was fidgeting, trying to pull his pants up more on his narrow hips. Um, because, well... I think you know why. He was suddenly aware of the silence around him, and looked up nervously.  
  
Their eyes widened. Ryou's eyes were an icy blue. They looked so natural and fit so perfectly with his attire that it surprised them. Also, his eyes had been outlined in black.  
  
"He wouldn't let me do any more," said Malik. "Still, it looks great, doesn't it?"  
  
"Uh, you guys," Harry said weakly. "Is this how muggles dress?"  
  
"Yup!" Malik said happily. "Well, we do, anyway."  
  
Ryou threw a dirty look at Malik. "You mean, you and Yami do."  
  
"Well now you do, too!"  
  
Yugi, who had been sitting on his bed, said, "Wow, Ryou. You should try that look more often!"  
  
/I definitely did not expect that./  
  
//Let me see.// Ryou was subjected to Yami's glare a split second later. He gulped uneasily as the crimson eyes surveyed him.  
  
//... he's... different...//  
  
/Yeah./  
  
"You know, the fan girls are going to go crazy when you go out," Seto said, coming in. He had a black silk dress shirt on (with the top button left unbuttoned) and black dress pants and shoes.  
  
"Mokuba tried to make me wear a tuxedo," he said, collapsing onto his own bed. "I told him that this wasn't *that* formal of a ball." He grinned at Ryou. "I guess I should be glad he didn't make me wear *that*."  
  
"What did you do?" Yugi asked Seto, trying to pry Harry, Hermione, and Ron's gazes off of Ryou. He was looking very uncomfortable now.  
  
"Told him I'd wear it at the next dance," Seto replied, catching on. It worked. The three finally turned around.  
  
"There's probably not going to be a next one," said Ron. "There's not even a dance every year. The last one was two years ago, and that was because of the Triwizard Tournament."  
  
"Exactly."  
  
Actually, none of them had asked anybody. They thought it best to avoid having to dance at all. They were only going because... well, they didn't have anything else to do. The only couple present were Yugi and Yami, and almost nobody knew about them.  
  
Malik had Mariku, and Ryou — well, he was still loyal to Yami Bakura. Seto just wasn't interested in anyone, and Harry and Ron decided not to go into all the trouble to get partners after what happened last time. They hadn't gotten much dancing in at the Yule Ball.  
  
"Ready to get mobbed by insane fans?" asked Yugi, grinning. He was wearing leather as well, with even more chains, bracelets, buckles, chokers, and belts than usual. They didn't even know where he'd gotten more. He couldn't possibly have fitted it all into his trunk with his other possessions. The Millennium Puzzle hung around his neck, as usual.  
  
"Wait," Ryou said quietly. He walked over to his bedside table and took out the Millennium Ring, holding it and looking at it, as if deciding to wear it or not.  
  
"It won't go well with your outfit," Malik warned. He had looped his Millennium Rod into his belt, but Ryou... he was a different case.  
  
"I don't care," Ryou said firmly, placing the leather strap around his neck. It just felt right there. The familiar weight calmed him down a little.  
  
"Whatever floats your boat," Malik said. He'd caught the look on Ryou's face. He'd been thinking about his yami.  
  
"I think we're late," Hermione said, glancing at a watch. She was right. The ball had started at eight. It was almost half past eight already.  
  
"It's okay," Harry assured her. "We can be fashionably late. They won't mind."  
  
They made their way to the Great Hall. From what they could hear through the doors, it was strangely quiet.  
  
"Well, expect the worst," said Malik cheerfully, pushing open the doors. They stepped inside.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
What will happen to them? Will they get attacked by crazy fan girls? (Yes.) Will they survive? (Maybe. Possibly. ... or not.) What'll happen between Ryou, Malik, and their yamis? (I dunno. But it's just heartbreaking, isn't it?) Find out in the next chapter!  
  
There you have it. Sorry it took incredibly long to update, but I just couldn't find any time at all. At least it's longer than usual. Sorry if it's awful, because I'm kinda running out of ideas at the moment. I guess the pets have been almost non-existent. I've been way too lazy. Actually, I'd forgotten about them. Tell me if you want the pets to go bye bye or not, 'kay? Any ideas on what'll happen to the bishies at the ball?  
  
Also, please send in your opinions on HP romance. What pairings? And no, it will not become a RyouxSeto thingy. There is absolutely NOTHING going on in between them. I'm probably not going to do any HP/YGO pairings, but if lotsa people want it, I might have to... Gotta please the fans!  
  
More Seto will come soon! For now, I've been concentrating on the RyouxBakura pairing. I don't have any ideas on YugixYami romance, and MalikxMariku will come later on. The mysterious Setox? pairing will be here soon. If you like it, great. If you don't, too bad.  
  
Uh, sorry if I've been a bit strange. *Looks at all the text above* Did I really write all of that? Wow. I wonder what I ate this morning.  
  
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT THAT'S HAD ME HYPER ALL WEEK! You know about the All- State orchestra thing/contest/thingy (oh, I already mentioned that, didn't I)? Well, some of you do, and some of you don't. And you know how I play the violin? The nice people who read my author bio do, anyway. Well, I auditioned, and I got concertmaster! That basically means that I'm in first place! Of the whole state! (Actually, of all the middle schoolers who tried out, but it's still really impressive, isn't it? I mean, I'm only a puny little seventh grader, right?) I got 389 points out of 400, so go me!  
  
Sorry (again) if I was just raving on to you about nothing important. I'm having to say sorry a lot, aren't I? Look, there is again.  
  
Sapphire: Must I always be the sophisticated one?  
  
Silver: What're you talking about?  
  
Sapphire: Review, please! Silver wants to thank all of the wonderful reviewers who've supported her! Remember, more reviews gets the next chapter out faster!  
  
Silver: No it doesn't! It just depends on how lazy I am! Well, review anyway. I might get started on the next chapter in May if you don't! (Just kidding!)  
  
Now I'll get out of your face and let you do all of the other stuff that you normally do. 


	11. Revelations

Oh no! I'm REALLY sorry for the slow update. I know this sound like a super lame excuse, but I was grounded. Yes, grounded. Hurry up everyone, and sympathize with me! Anyway, gomen gomen gomen to the trillionth power. I kinda forgot about this story.  
  
Well, since your authoress is feeling horrible and miserable for doing this to you, you can at least give her a break and not start shouting at her, right? I certainly hope so...  
  
Once again, my sincerest apologies. On with the story which I have almost absolutely no idea what to do with now!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
It was DEFINITELY not a good time for them to have gone into the Great Hall. Everyone was quiet; Dumbledore (dressed in overalls, a red and white checked shirt, and a farmer's hat) was in the middle of making another one of his speeches.  
  
Several professors stifled astonished noises at the sight of them — namely, the way Ryou, Malik, and Yugi were dressed.  
  
All attention was focused on them now.  
  
Then came the screams. There were shrieks and yells as all girls abandoned their partners for the night and made a mad dash for the four foreign students.  
  
"Oh, just look at them!"  
  
"Aren't they soooo hot?"  
  
"Sexyness!"  
  
"Ryou's sooo different!"  
  
"No, Malik's still the best!"  
  
"I think Yugi's the cutest, though!"  
  
"I call Seto!"  
  
"I've got dibs on Ryou, then!"  
  
"Go!" Seto whispered urgently, shoving Harry, Ron, and Hermione away unceremoniously. He was just in time. A split second later, the four were surrounded by girls. The other three would've been squished like pancakes. Dumbledore stood up, looking both amused and a little surprised, smiling serenely.  
  
Yugi mouthed 'HELP!' Dumbledore conjured up a piece of straw and stuck it in his mouth, going for the authentic look.  
  
"Surely you're going to help them, Albus?" asked Professor McGonagall, still looking at the overturned tables and chairs, and then the mass of people at the doors.  
  
"I have to admit, I'm curious as to what they're going to do," Dumbledore replied, his eyes twinkling.  
  
On his other side, Snape gave an impatient noise of disgust. It was mandatory that all teachers were to attend, or else he wouldn't be there at all.  
  
"Look at them. They're just crawling all over each other to get at them," he sneered.  
  
Secretly, he was hoping that one of those crazier ones — what's his name, the blond one — Malik, was going to kill someone. The girls were just about driving all the teachers crazy. And most of the boys weren't even caring about anything. Over half of them stood staring, trying to subdue heavy nosebleeds. The others just looked confused. And... almost the whole female population of the student body was trying to get at Seto, Yugi, Ryou, and Malik.  
  
It looked like Hermione was just about the only girl not going crazy. She muttered about rudeness, as she had landed on the floor, and was about to pick herself up off the ground when a hand stretched out in front of her.  
  
"May I help?" Draco asked, smiling just a little. "It looks like you're having a bit of trouble."  
  
"Yeah, thanks," Hermione said, grasping his hand and pulling herself up. She was still getting used to the fact that Draco was being nice to them. Actually, he didn't look half bad, either. He had on a dark blue dress shirt and dark pants. He was obviously going for a casual look, but the effect was almost as good as Malik's or Seto's.  
  
"Seems Malik overdid it a little," Draco chuckled. "Still, it looks like the rest of them are having trouble as well. Should we go assist them?" He looked questioningly at her.  
  
"Nah, let's leave them to sort it out themselves. They can handle themselves just fine." She didn't know why, but she was feeling extremely wicked. Now that she thought about it, Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen. Oh well, Draco was pleasant to be around now, anyway.  
  
"Why don't we go out for some fresh air?" she asked Draco. He seemed like the only other sane person left. He deserved another chance. And besides, she wanted to know him better.  
  
"Sure," he said uncertainly, throwing a last look at the crowd still surrounding their friends.  
  
The garden was there again, as it had been during the Yule Ball, shimmering with fairies. Hermione welcomed the cool night air. She could hear the slight babble of water from the fountain decorating the center of the garden.  
  
"So who're you with?" she asked him, as they made their way to a stone bench near the water. "Or, rather, who were you with?" It seemed more appropriate, since everyone else was still in the castle.  
  
"No one," he replied truthfully, turning to gaze into the water. The lights twinkling on the surface were moving every so often, luring him into a trance-like state.  
  
"Nobody you liked?" asked Hermione, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"There might just be someone," said Draco mischievously. He brushed the strange statement away with a sigh, looking up at the clear night sky. It seemed that it stretched on forever and ever. How he would like flying all the way up into the stars someday...  
  
"I haven't felt this free since... I don't know," he laughed. He continued to stare wistfully at the stars.  
  
"Um, if you don't mind me asking," Hermione said tentatively, "What happened? I mean, why have you changed?"  
  
Draco didn't answer. "Sorry! I didn't want to offend you or anything—"  
  
"It's quite alright," he assured her, turning around, a genuine smile on his face. "You're one of the few people who've actually given me a chance ever since... well, since I've changed."  
  
He took a deep breath. "I know I can trust you, so here's my story."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Inside, the others weren't having such a great time. At least Seto had set up some kind of force field around them. But now the fanatical girls were trying to get in.  
  
"Why can't we get in?"  
  
"C'mon! Let's combine our strength to get in!"  
  
"How can we get them to stop?" asked Yugi, still trying to recover. Somebody had pulled one of his strands of hair! And it had hurt!  
  
"Just a minute," said Seto, thinking quickly. "I've got it. I think we can arrange to get them off our backs for a while. I'll need some help, though. And Malik, get that thing away from me, it's giving me a headache again."  
  
"What, this?" Malik asked, perplexed. He pulled out the Millennium Rod.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Just do it already!" exclaimed Ryou. He slipped his hand into Seto's, forcing a wave of energy through the connection. He had started to learn about all of the old magic a couple of months ago. The others did the same, linking their hands together and forming a single connection. Malik was holding onto his other hand, and he felt the slightly darker magic travel through him.  
  
"Get ready," warned Seto quietly. He pushed outwards with his mind gently. The force field suddenly spread out, expanding rapidly. It was like a ripple in a pond. It just passed through people, but they froze in mid- stride/yell/glomp. Seto allowed the magic to touch only the part of the students that had been, to put it mildly, 'attacking' them.  
  
'Now.' They heard his voice ring in their heads. They all let go of each other's hands at the same time. They looked around. People dressed in random muggle clothes were spread all around them, frozen in various poses. Some of them looked plain scary. (For example, six different articles of clothing on their heads — which was, incidentally, represented by Mr. Vincent Crabbe.) They were to wake in five minutes, and would not remember anything.  
  
"Whew. I'm glad that's over. Now let's get out of here, before they wake up again," said Yugi.  
  
"Actually, if it worked correctly, they're not really going to try to mob us again for the whole night," Seto told him.  
  
The four headed for another doorway. This was the one that lead outside.  
  
"I don't understand," Professor McGonagall said. "It was such powerful magic..."  
  
"Yes, and no," corrected Dumbledore. "Powerful to some, put is only a fraction of the output that Seto will have later on. This is what Voldemort will be after once he finds the Millennium items useless."  
  
Professor McGonagall looked at him in alarm. She opened her mouth to speak, put Dumbledore said loudly, so that the other teachers would hear, "Let's get to the dance floor and have a little fun before the students wake up, now, shall we? Professor McGonagall, would you care to dance?"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The students woke up ten minutes later, feeling very... stiff. They couldn't recall anything from the past few minutes, so they just decided to continue on with the ball. They joined the teachers in dancing, eating, having drinks, and just talking. You know, "hanging out."  
  
Another half hour would pass before any of them would start to wonder where Ryou, Yugi, Malik, or Seto were, as well as Draco or Hermione.  
  
As for Harry and Ron... their whereabouts are currently unknown to this poor author.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A single figure stood near an archway watching everyone have fun. Somebody with soft, white hair and ice blue eyes. Long, delicate eyelashes fell as the lids closed, covering the blue.  
  
He was so alone... He shivered, backing away from the noise even more, stepping into the moonlight.  
  
He desperately needed his yami.  
  
/Bakura?/ he ventured.  
  
Silence, as all of his other pleas had been answered with.  
  
/Onegai, Bakura... I really need you!/  
  
There was no reply.  
  
/'Kura, please!/ Ryou sank to the floor. Everything was going wrong. His yami wasn't speaking to him at all, his other friends had gone somewhere and deserted him, and his whole life was just messed up. And what was more, there had been an awful pain just ripping at him from the inside, as if his very soul was being destroyed.  
  
A single tear fell onto the moonlit marble floor. It glistened on the white tile.  
  
"What is it?" came a familiar voice.  
  
Ryou's breath caught in his throat. He looked up. Yami Bakura, his yami, was standing in the shadows, leaning on the doorway.  
  
"'Kura!" He picked himself up and stared. Yami Bakura seemed different, somehow. Maybe it was just the shadows, but he could barely see him.  
  
Nonetheless, he started towards him.  
  
"No."  
  
"Wha—?" Ryou stopped in his tracks, a look of confusion on his face.  
  
"There's something that we need to clear up," snarled Yami Bakura. Ryou flinched at the tone of his voice. His darker side inwardly berated himself. He had not meant to sound so harsh.  
  
"What do you mean?" Ryou asked, his voice wavering slightly.  
  
"The boggart," Yami Bakura replied simply.  
  
Ryou suddenly understood. He remembered the form the boggart had taken when it had faced him.  
  
"Oh no! 'Kura, I can explain!"  
  
"Really? If I recall correctly, a boggart assumes the shape of your worst fear. So, why, when it saw you, did it turn into me? How do you explain that? That your worst fear is me?"  
  
"No!" cried Ryou. "It was because... because...."  
  
Three other figures were standing concealed behind a stone column.  
  
"What's going on?" whispered Yugi, having just joined them.  
  
"Shh. Wait and see," replied Malik, staring intently at the scene in front of them.  
  
"Because what?" asked Yami Bakura, his eyebrows raised. "If you hate me, then it *is* possible for me to disappear from your life forever."  
  
"What are you saying?"  
  
Yami Bakura stepped out from the shadows. Ryou's eyes widened. There was a muffled gasp from the stone pillar behind them.  
  
"You're... 'Kura, what's happened?" he asked, unable to take his eyes off of his yami.  
  
Yami Bakura was almost totally transparent. No, Ryou *could* see right through him. The moonlight shone through the figure and onto the floor. There was no shadow.  
  
"Almost gone," his yami said quietly, lifting a hand up and looking at Ryou through it.  
  
"The bond..." Malik said quietly, eyebrows furrowed. His eyes suddenly widened. "No... it can't..."  
  
"The bond, the link between us," Yami Bakura continued, "is almost gone. Which means that I, the spirit, will disappear. We have grown apart, not contacted each other for weeks, so the special connection between yami and hikari... has died away..." He shut his eyes, his body fading even more. "I just came by," he paused, looking as if every single word was costing him dearly, "to say... goodbye. I don't want you to hate me, and I can't exist knowing that fact, so I will go."  
  
"But surely he's been resisting death's call?" asked Yugi.  
  
"He cannot prevent it anymore," Yami told him. "He certainly does not want to go, but the pull is too great. And with nothing left here in the physical world, nothing or no one left to pull him back, he really has no choice."  
  
Ryou clutched his chest and the Millennium Ring. There had been a horrible pain when Yami Bakura disappeared even more that time — worse than the others had been. Forcing himself to keep his head clear, for an intense wave of nausea had threatened to come, he looked up. He was about to faint, there was black eating away at the corners of his vision.  
  
"No..." he choked out. He had to tell him, fast. "Bakura, that time... the boggart appeared as you... was because I didn't want you to return to hating me. That would mean that you wouldn't care for me anymore. You, returning to your past... *is* my worst fear. The most awful thing that could happen to me... is losing you — the present you. The one who has turned caring and compassionate."  
  
He struggled to turn his feelings into words, but found that he couldn't. Instead, he opened his link and let the emotions flow.  
  
Yami Bakura froze, the storm of misery and pain, as well as the happiness and laughter of the past, flooding his head.  
  
"You've blocked me for so long, and now I know why. But it's not right! You're my yami, my dark. I'm your hikari, your light. Neither of us can exist without the other." Tears made their way down Ryou's face as he struggled to get up. "You must know this is why we've been feeling as if our soul has been splitting. You are a part of my soul, as I am a part of yours. We are not complete without our counterparts. We will never feel whole without the other. We *need* each other, 'Kura. And... even though you won't always return my feelings, I will always love you... 'Kura-chan."  
  
They were only inches apart. Ryou reached forward, fingertips outstretched. He could barely feel his yami. Tentatively, he reached up and brushed the other's lips with his own, and then hugged him tight around his waist.  
  
"I don't want you to go, 'Kura. I still, and always will, love you."  
  
Yami Bakura's eyes widened in shock. Everything had suddenly all locked into place. There was a light coming from within his body.  
  
Ryou could feel it already. The change had happened immediately when they had touched. Everything was being pieced together again. Memories, feelings, and atoms. Slowly, Yami Bakura's body gained density. Suddenly, the moon was shining on an almost opaque figure, instead of through it and onto the floor.  
  
The yami wrapped his arms around Ryou protectively, returning the embrace.  
  
//I'm sorry, Ryou. I — //  
  
/Don't worry about it. I would've acted the same way. I'm just happy that you're here again. I've missed you./  
  
"Aww, isn't that sweet?" asked Malik, finally stepping out from their hiding spot.  
  
For once, the formerly cold-hearted thief didn't reply.  
  
The rest of the group followed him.  
  
"Hey, look!" Yugi said mischievously, pointing at a spot somewhere above their heads. It was mistletoe.  
  
"I wonder how that got there," Seto remarked dryly, throwing an obvious look at our favorite blond Egyptian bishounen. "It's not even Christmas. Who's ever heard of mistletoe on Halloween?"  
  
"Well, this is a first then," said Malik hastily, but grinning all the while at the couple bathed in moonlight.  
  
Ryou looked up, smiled, and leaned up to place a chaste kiss on Yami Bakura's lips.  
  
//You call *that* a kiss?// Yami Bakura rolled his eyes and pulled Ryou into a fiery kiss that sent a sudden surge of tingling exhilaration coursing through their bodies.  
  
Ryou blushed, breathing heavily, at the catcalls from the group after they broke apart.  
  
Yami Bakura, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips, leaned forward, and whispered in Ryou's ear, his warm breath sending the other's heart racing, "Aishiteru, my little light." He then nipped at Ryou's earlobe, getting a surprised gasp in return.  
  
"Oh, yeah, one more thing," the spirit said, straightening up and frowning, looking Ryou up and down. "What's with the outfit?"  
  
Ryou looked sheepishly at his attire. "Well, Malik —"  
  
//I like it.//  
  
/Y—you do?/ Ryou asked incredulously.  
  
//Hai. And... I suppose the eyes, too.//  
  
/Huh?/ He had forgotten about them.  
  
"Oh, screw these!" He suddenly exclaimed, surprising them all. He pulled the magical contacts out, dropped them someplace random, and threw himself at Yami Bakura again, burying his face into his dark's chest.  
  
/I didn't like them anyway./  
  
His darker half silently agreed.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Okay, something weird is definitely going on here," Ron said to Harry, who was hiding behind another pillar some ten feet away. He pulled out his Extendable Ear and opened his mouth to speak. Harry held up his hand, indicating for the redhead to stop. There was a look of intense concentration as he listened intently to his own Extendable Ear. Then he beckoned for Ron to move over to his hiding spot. The other complied.  
  
They were listening to a conversation outside. One that happened to be between their best friend and previous worst enemy.  
  
"— so Malik was pretty much my first best friend here. Everyone else only respected me because of my name and my actions. On the first or second day, Malik approached me in the Slytherin common room late at knight. He told me to close my eyes. I did. There was a flash of golden light, and suddenly I was flying through old memories. Then I was back in the common room. I felt... different, somehow. There was a presence there before, one that I couldn't describe, but it was gone after that light.  
  
"He explained that I had been controlled lightly by the Imperious Curse for my whole life, ever since I could understand basic concepts."  
  
There was a small gasp from Hermione. But she remained silent after that, and Draco continued.  
  
"I found out... that it was my father. He had been influencing my thoughts, my actions, my feelings. I remembered how I'd treated others before the curse was lifted. And I regretted every single thing I did. I don't want to become like him! I don't want to hurt innocents. I don't want... to become a Death Eater."  
  
A sigh from Draco, and then, "The initiation for me is this summer. I will have become of age. Malik explained to me that my father does not yet know of the severed connection. I'll still have some time. Malik has been relating previous events of his past. His future, too, had been forced. But he fought, and escaped out of it. We are very much alike, Malik and I. More so, he has given me the strength to continue. He gave me a long lecture the other day..."  
  
Draco chuckled.  
  
"...about how I shouldn't just throw my life away after finding out about my father's deed. He told me that I needed to retaliate. He's given me hope, set an example for me. I will now try to become the best person I can. It won't matter if most still think that I'm still snobby, rude, and stuck up. Heck, all the Slytherins hate me now. Or, rather, they hate both Malik *and* me now. But I know that there will still be people that will give me a chance, despite my previous actions. Those people were Yugi, Ryou, and Seto for Malik. And of course, his sister, too. Now, in a place where his reputation hasn't gotten ahead of him, many others are treating him just fine. That is my goal. I have already found four people like that. Malik, and the very ones who helped Malik himself — Yugi, Ryou, and Seto. Although I don't have any family members who'll be like that, I'm sure that I can find some distant relatives that will let me in."  
  
"No," said Hermione softly. Draco tensed. "No," she continued. "You have five people. Possibly more. There's Dumbledore, and all of the other professors, too. I'm sure Ron and Harry will consider you a friend once they know. You still have a chance, Draco. Malik is right. Just take that one chance and make it a reality."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Ron stared at Harry, yanking both of their Extendable Ears out.  
  
"Did you hear that?" Harry asked. Ron nodded feebly.  
  
"Wow..." he said, having gained a new respect for Draco. "Poor bloke. Imagine... his own father..."  
  
"Wait, Ron," Harry said suddenly. "Don't tell anyone about his, okay?" He looked down. "I... I have just have a feeling that Draco was going to tell us when he was ready, or something, so we shouldn't press any further."  
  
Ron nodded. "Agreed."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Look! They must be giving us a reward for all those exams! Hogsmeade trip tomorrow! No classes until Tuesday!"  
  
"Yeah, I was wondering when I'd get to go to Honeyduke's next. I haven't been in Hogsmeade in ages!"  
  
"I can't wait! I'm going over with some of my friends to have tea at Madam Puddifoot's. Wanna come?"  
  
Excited chatter filled the Gryffindor common room the next day. Ryou was somewhere else at the moment. Malik groaned, his face falling into the open book in front of him.  
  
"What're they going on about now?" he asked. "What's a Hogsmeade? And Madam Puddifoot's? That just sounds really gay."  
  
"Oh, Hogsmeade is a town right next to Hogwarts. It's an entirely magical town full of all sorts of stuff! I just know you'll love it!" Hermione told him.  
  
"Yeah, and there's this really great place called Honey—"  
  
"Ron, don't start on that again," Harry smiled, giving his friend a little shake of his head.  
  
"Well, Draco's told me a bit about this place..." Malik started. "I know! How about going together! I'll tell Draco later this afternoon."  
  
Hermione bit her lip, making up her mind. "Actually, I need to talk to all of you," she said quietly. "Up in your dormitory, for more privacy, I think. You too, Ryou, Yugi."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Okay, what is it?" asked Ron, after they'd all trooped up to the dormitory.  
  
"First of all, Ron, I really want you to be nicer to Draco. He's a really great person, you know. I got to talk to him a little during the ball last night, and I just think... that he should get another chance."  
  
Ron looked away, staring guiltily at somewhere above Dean's poster of the West Ham soccer team, before nodding and saying, "Alright."  
  
"Second of all," Hermione went on, facing Yugi, Malik, and Seto, "I really think that you guys should tell us more. I mean, we've known each other ever since August, but you're still acting all secretive all the time. Please?" She looked into Yugi's eyes. They reflected the conflict that was going on inside his head. They didn't answer.  
  
"Look, I've done quite a bit of research. Those gold items you have — they're Millennium Items, aren't they? Do you have... spirits inside them like the legends say?"  
  
Yugi's eyes widened. Actually, they turned red. Hermione let out a sharp breath of surprise. Then he said, in a deep voice, "Where did you get that information from?"  
  
"A — a really old book in the corner of the library. It was the only one in that section written partly in English... Wait... you're not Yugi!" She stared back at him, amazed. "So is it true?"  
  
Yami admired this girl's determination and perseverance to seek out the answer. She had spunk, all right. And she'd actually discovered their secret. He took a step closer, studying her closely. Her gaze didn't falter. She didn't move a step. Yami turned around, having decided.  
  
"Very well then. We will have to meet somewhere more enclosed. It is possible that someone will overhear us in the vicinity of the castle."  
  
"Tomorrow," said Malik. Hermione's gaze fell on him. He and Seto didn't seem to change at all. "There is a small cave up beyond that town," he continued, his lavender eyes looking straight at her. "If you want to find out the truth, then arrive there by two. You do want to know, don't you?"  
  
"Yes," came the firm reply.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"I should've known they'd find out. Hermione is very perceptive," Yami said. They were still in the dormitory, while the other three had gone back to the common room.  
  
"Yes, but I think that it'll be better after they know. And we won't have to be so secretive, either," Malik mused.  
  
"Like you were ever secretive before?" Yami asked, rolling his eyes. He sighed.  
  
"Someone'll have to tell Ryou."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Hermione, I'm impressed," said Ron. "But how come you didn't tell us first?"  
  
"Sorry, Ron," she sighed. "I guess it was a spur of the moment thing. I never did have any time to get to you first. But it just seemed like such a good opportunity."  
  
"But the cave," Harry said thoughtfully. "How could they have known about it? I mean, since they've never been to Hogsmeade before, they shouldn't know about anything in it, much less the hiding spot. Most villagers don't even know about that."  
  
"Ah, I don't know," said Ron, stretching. "Fancy a game of chess, Harry?"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Gasp! What's going to happen? Are they going to spill it all? What chaos is going to ensue at Hogsmeade? And do I detect a little Draco/Hermione? But the real question is, do you *want* Draco/Hermione? Send in your comments please!  
  
Just to warn you, the next time I post is still unknown. I'm trying to get as much done as I can today, since I'm staying at home (I have the awful, evil flu). Uh, I hope you're still liking my story so far. The last thing I want to do is lose readers because of my inability to write.  
  
And... I'd also like to ask again of you to review for each chapter, if you haven't done so already. It would really help me lots! Thanks to the people who've already done that, and cookies for everyone who's actually reviewed so far!  
  
Thank you so much for all of your support. I really appreciate all of the um, 'constructive criticism' that some of you have given me, as well as the encouragement the rest of you have voiced in your reviews. I'll really try hard to bring out the next chapter soon! 


	12. Hogsmeade

LOOK HOW LONG IT TOOK ME TO TYPE THIS! TWO FUCKING MONTHS! ARGH! I'm so pathetically stupid. I'm amazed you wonderful people don't already hate me. Okay, all this crap below – they're my comments from... a long time ago. I just didn't bother to delete it. You guys... are way too nice to me! WAAAHHH!!!! starts sobbing I'm so sorry....!!!!! And I'm sorry this chapter stinks! My life is horrible...

O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.O.

Okay, here's the next chapter! Wow, I haven't really found any time at all to type this. How do all the other authors do it? Well, anyway, on to the chapter. It's number... 12, is it not?  
  
Oh, and another thing. These are the results for the Draco/Hermione pairing. Remember, there's still some more time, so you can still cast your vote!  
  
Yes: 5  
  
No: 2  
  
Don't care: 1  
  
By the way, Draco already knows about the Millennium items and all that. That's 'cause he's specialler than the others.

.O.O.O.O.O.

"Mmm... Yami... stop... we have to — ahh!" Yugi's closed in ectasy. Yami grinned from behind him, where he had been busy layering Yugi's pale neck with little kisses and... doing certain other things.  
  
You were saying?he purred over the mind link, playing with Yugi's hair as he did.  
  
/We... have to... get to the Entrance Hall!/ Yugi panted. He made a huge effort to get untangled, pulling his shirt back down, and then... fell off the bed.  
  
Yami raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Ouch." Yugi shook his head a little to get it back into focus. "They're going to leave without us if we don't hurry!" he told his dark.  
  
Oh. In that case...Yami dematerialized into the puzzle as he trailed off, red eyes sparkling playfully still.  
  
"Thanks a lot, Yami," the other mumbled, grabbing the Millennium Puzzle hurriedly and slipping it around his neck. "I know you did that on purpose. Sheesh." He dashed out of the dormitory.

.O.O.O.O.O.

"There he is!" Draco said, turning back to Filch, who didn't look too happy. Yugi was sliding down the huge banister (which was probably not allowed), a huge grin plastered on his face. He stayed unfazed by the enormous height, jumping the last few feet and landing semi-gracefully. He... uh, landed on his feet, but kind of lost his balance at the end and toppled over.  
  
He got back up in a flash. "Wow, what a rush!" he exclaimed, cheeks still flushed with exhilaration. After all, he had slid all the way from the seventh floor. He started running towards the rest of the group gathered at the doors. It didn't help much that his legs were so short.  
  
"Sorry!" he gasped. "I was a bit... preoccupied."  
  
"We can tell," Ryou laughed. He looked pointedly at Yugi's tousled hair and slightly bruised lips. There was also a pretty apparent spot on his neck. Yugi blushed cutely and straightened his buckle at his neck to hide the mark, and then ran a hand through his hair quickly.  
  
His eyes flickered to Filch. Filch backed away just a bit at the enormously huge and innocent eyes. "I'm not too late, am I, Mr. Filch?" Yugi asked hopefully.  
  
"Er, no," the caretaker said gruffly, marking him off of the list.  
  
"Yes! Now we can finally go!" Malik said excitedly. Seto rolled his eyes.  
  
"Y'know, you've probably been there about a dozen times already. What's so special now?" he asked as they stepped out into the cool, crisp air. It was a pretty chilly day. There wasn't a hunt of sunlight. The carriages were waiting for them, and somehow, the whole group stuffed themselves into one carriage.  
  
"What have we not done?" asked Yami Bakura loftily. He had taken over. "We've already found a couple dozen secret passageways, camped out in the Forbidden Forest, and broken just about all of the school rules."  
  
"Yeah, and why're you out already?" asked Malik in a muffled voice, his head still sticking out the window. The wind was whipping his long hair back.  
  
Yami Bakura blinked. "Ryou says that he's sleepy," he informed them.  
  
"Oh? Did he not get enough sleep? What were you two doing, Bakura?" Malik asked deviously, taking his head back in to smirk at Yami Bakura.  
  
"I just went out for a stroll," the tomb robber said innocently. It didn't quite work.  
  
"Right... in his body, and probably for hours, tiring him out," Malik added. "C'mon, I know you."  
  
Draco, on the other hand was studying Yami Bakura carefully.  
  
"What?!" the spirit of the Ring finally snapped in annoyance.  
  
"Oh, it's just that... Malik's told me about you, but I've never really met you. You and Ryou are pretty different, aren't you?" said Draco.  
  
"No shit, Sherlock. And for your information, I do not appreciate people ogling me like that."  
  
"'Kay, whatever, dude." Draco turned to stare out the window instead, suppressing a boyish grin.  
  
Yami Bakura's eyebrow twitched. Had he just been called a 'dude?' Malik was definitely rubbing off too much on Draco.

.O.O.O.O.O.

"Ah, so this is Hogsmeade!" said Yugi, spinning around as he walked to take in all the sights. He was very impressed. "Let's go to Honeyduke's first!" he suggested brightly, stopping in front of a shop that was crammed full of students.  
  
"No!" Everyone looked at Yami in surprise. He looked... well, panicky. And frantic. "Trust me, you do NOT want a sugar-high Yugi!"  
  
"But Yaaamiii!!!!" Yugi whined, latching onto his other half's neck and hugging him tightly. The others sweatdropped.  
  
"No." came the firm reply. Yugi pouted, but gave them the thumbs-up from behind Yami's spikey thingies. He leaned forward and whispered something into Yami's ear. Yami gulped. It was clear that the ex-pharaoh was fighting a losing battle. Yugi snuggled into his neck, eyes closed.  
  
Malik was almost dying from laughter. Let's just leave it at that.

.O.O.O.O.O.

"Bouncy bouncy bouncy!" Yugi giggled, hopping up and down, a jumbo candy cane sticking out of his mouth. One sentence. They'd gone to Honeyduke's.  
  
And gotten about ten pounds of different chocolate, all of the different toffees that were in stock, and at least a dozen pieces of everything else. Yami had taken refuge in his soul room AGES ago.  
  
"There's gotta be something that can cure hyperness," Yami Bakura growled. "Come on, you guys know fucking magic! Isn't there something?"  
  
"Nope," said Malik happily, sucking on a blood-flavored lollipop. "Already checked. Here, try one of these, they're actually okay. Not as good as real blood, though."  
  
Seto massaged his forehead. "Knew I should've stayed back, knew I should've stayed back..." he groaned. He had, of course, refused to buy anything for Mokuba from Honeyduke's, being the caring brother that he was. Besides, Mokuba seemed to have an unlimited supply of sugar anyway.  
  
Draco was just walking alongside all of them nonchalantly, trying not to attract too many stares from the villagers.  
  
"This way," he called to them, heading purposefully for the Shrieking Shack. It would give them at least a little privacy. There was nobody there save for two third years, new to Hogsmeade. They quickly walked off after looking at them, keen to get away from the new — and strange — sixth years.  
  
"What's this?" Malik commented, walking around the perimeter of the wooden building.  
  
"The Shrieking Shack," Seto told him. "Long ago people believed that there were spirits haunting it because of the howling noises that came out." At this point, Yami Bakura snorted. "Nobody knew that it was actually a werewolf that took refuge in it every full moon to hide."  
  
"See? You do know everything!" Draco exclaimed. Seto looked at him, confused. Nefertari suddenly popped out of thin air, gave a soft call, and alighted on Draco's head, as if she were indignant. Yup, Draco was suffering.  
  
"What?" he asked, trying to bat her off his head.  
  
"Well, first of all, it means that she trusts you," Seto said. "So don't try to bat her off."  
  
"Fine. But you still seem to know everything that you're not supposed to," Draco grumbled. "What's up with that?"  
  
"I dunno. Things just come into my head," Seto shrugged. "Anyway, where'd Bakura go?"  
  
"Somewhere," said Malik, flopping down on the hill. "He's going to meet us up there later. Draco, you're coming too. We're going to go talk to Harry, Ron, and Hermione about you-know-what. You don't mind, do you?"  
  
"Nah."  
  
"Thought so. 'Sides, you'll get to gloat at them for not knowing yet while you found out. Partly on your own. Three whole weeks ago."  
  
"Yeah, I guess you've got a point," the Slytherin laughed. "They have been known to be pretty dense." He lay down beside Malik on the grass, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. "I found out about the Sorcerer's Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, Sirius Black, Mad Eye Moody, and all that crap way before them," he said, ticking them off on his fingers. "Basically everything 'hard and difficult' they've encountered so far at Hogwarts. I just kept my mouth shut because they practically hated me."  
  
Neither talked for a little while.  
  
Then the silence was interrupted by a loud 'MEEOORRWWW!!!!!' They turned to Seto, who groaned and pulled out a super-mini-mini-mini laptop and opened it.  
  
"Wha — ?" Malik and Draco were looking confused. Yugi was still bouncing around, now chasing the non-existent butterflies.  
  
"It's Noa," Seto explained. "See? Remember him, Malik?"  
  
"Noa?" Malik said incredulously, red lollipop falling out of his mouth. He rushed over to the screen, Draco hot on his heels. "Wow!"  
  
A very indignant Noa Kaiba was glaring at them from the screen. There were cats. Lots of them. Hissing at Noa, who waved them off. They blurred, and then the particles floated up and dissipated.  
  
"Who's he?" Draco asked, examining the laptop more closely. He'd never really seen one of these, because, well, he'd pretty much stayed away from Muggles up until now. It was amazing how efficiently Muggles had managed to live without magic. Oh, anyway, back to the kid in the laptop. He had aqua hair and... blue eyes. Actually, he resembled Seto in many ways. Although he did look a few years younger.  
  
"This," Seto said tiredly, "is my brother. My older brother."  
  
"No way," Draco breathed. "Why is he in there?"  
  
"Well, you see," said Malik, a lopsided grin coming onto his face now, "he doesn't really have a body. His mind's in a virtual world Seto created after the first one was destroyed. They're actually step-brothers, and technically, Noa did come before Seto, so... there ya have it."  
  
"What's up, Noa? I haven't seen you since Japan."  
  
"Yeah. I've been annoying Seto, mostly. I can connect myself to Mokuba's laptop too, so I've been chatting with him quite often. Seto promised to show me Hogsmeade – and he almost forgot! I had to torture the cats, you see." Noa smiled impishly up at them. He waved at Nefertari, still on Draco's head, and she ruffled her feathers just a bit, clearly happy to see him.  
  
"Fine, fine. Let's go," sighed Seto, starting to make his way over to Yugi. "Drevearus," he said, pointing his wand at the hyperactive sugar- high teen. Yugi fell backwards with a thud, eyelids dropping closed. A moment later he sat up abruptly, looking around at them.  
  
"Oh, hi, you guys," he said cheerfully, as if nothing different had happened. The others sweatdropped. Yugi then spotted the laptop. "Noa! How're you doing? Still terrorizing the cats? Getting bored in the virtual world that can take you virtually anywhere?"  
  
"Sadly, yes," Noa replied. "D'you mind giving me a tour of Hogsmeade? I can get Seto to give me a holographic body so I'll feel normal for once, and not tiny. Seriously, your heads are huge on the screen!"  
  
"Sure, no problem!" Yugi said gladly. "To tell you the truth, we've only gone to one place so far, so you haven't missed much. Draco's going to show all of us the sights."  
  
"Alright!" Noa punched the air. "C'mon, Seto, do your thing!"  
  
Seto pulled the laptop back and set a levitation charm on it to float in midair while he typed.  
  
Soon, a green cyber-net structure materialized. The image got clearer with each computerized beep. Soon, a pretty solid looking Noa Kaiba was standing in front of them.  
  
"Okay, I've got the sensory indicators linked up as well," Seto said, typing rapidly, not blinking at all. Now all we need is a stationary object to link the imager to. It doesn't have to stay completely still, but I'm sure not about to hold this thing for the whole time."  
  
"What about Nefertari?" asked Yugi, pointing at the blue bird on Draco's head. "She can just sit there for the whole time, right?"  
  
Draco opened his mouth in protest, but Noa thrust a fist through his head playfully, knowing full well that this would send electrical charges throughout the boy's body, since the transfer of data was not yet complete. The head, as the central system, would send the most pain through the body.  
  
Draco stifled a gasp of pain, and then nodded weakly.  
  
"Oops. Sorry 'bout that, Draco," Noa said sheepishly. "I forgot not to aim for the head."  
  
A row of blue strips flicked from LOADING to COMPLETE. The last bar powered up, and then a series of beeping noises confirmed UPLOAD COMPLETE.  
  
"Yes! Finally! You're a genius, Seto!"  
  
"I know I am," the taller Kaiba replied smugly. He fastened a small transmitter to Nefertari's head, whispering in her ear. "You don't mind, do you, girl?" She cooed softly again. The device would send constant signals to one of the KC satellites in space somewhere, which had special microchips installed by Seto himself. The satellite would supply the hologram for Noa.  
  
Noa flung an arm around Draco. "I wish I could actually feel you," he commented. "There's only a faint sensation when I'm out in the real world. I can only hear, talk, and... move. I can sorta smell, but it's kind of hard. Oh well. Sorry again about the whole electrical shock thing. It shouldn't happen again, now that I'm fully uploaded."  
  
"Y-yeah. Great," Draco muttered. There were little shocks still playing around his fingertips, he had a weird hologram walking beside him claiming to be Seto's older brother, and a magical blue bird sitting on top of his head. If they had looked like a strange group before, just imagine what they looked like now.  
  
"Here's the plan, you guys," Yugi said, checking his watch. "After we go see everything, we're going to have to meet up with Bakura at the cave. So we've got... about... two or three hours."  
  
"Fine by me," Malik said, stretching. "Where to first?"

.O.O.O.O.O.

"Awesome place!" Noa exclaimed, looking back down at the magical village a few hours later. They were now climbing the cliff that led to the secret cave.  
  
"Yeah, whatever. We're about twenty minutes early," Malik said. He looked up at the jagged rocks up above and groaned. "I don't want to climb this whole thing! Ah, screw it, I'm using magic!" A cloud of Shadow Magic surrounded him, levitating up. "See you guys at the top!"

.O.O.O.O.O.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione stepped through the cave entrance, getting ready for total darkness, only to see that there was already a small fire – a weird blue one – blazing in the middle of the cave. What they saw was even stranger. Yami Bakura was sitting in one corner, glaring at them. Ryou was... asleep in his lap. Yugi and Malik were having yet another Duel Monsters game, and Seto, Draco, and a kid with aqua hair were talking quietly. They all looked up as the three stood awkwardly at the cave entrance.  
  
"Hi," Yugi said, gesturing toward an empty space beside him. "You can sit down, unless you want to stand." He smiled cutely. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down, across from Ryou and his yami, and diagonal from Seto, Draco, and the other teen.  
  
Hermione was staring at Yami Bakura with an unreadable expression on her face. He growled. Why were so many people goggling at him today?  
  
"Uh, Tomb Robber, you might want to wake Ryou up," Malik pointed out.  
  
As if in response, Ryou shifted, snuggling closer to his yami. He mumbled, "Go 'way. Let me sleep..." and then promptly buried his head into Yami Bakura's hair.  
  
"O...kay..." Draco half-laughed. "Let's just get started without him then."  
  
"Wait a minute," Ron said, turning to Yugi. "You mean that Mal— that Draco already knows?"  
  
"Uh... yeah?" The three Gryffindors glanced at each other.  
  
"He figured it out by himself, alright?" Malik said loudly, trying to break the tension in the air.  
  
He inwardly groaned. This was going to take a while.

.O.O.O.O.O.

I'm skipping the explaining part. 'Cause all of you people know. And... it doesn't matter if I write it out or not. Either way, the characters from HP are gonna know. Because I made them know. So there.

.O.O.O.O.O.  
  
"Wow." An hour later, Hermione looked as if she was still trying to absorb all the information.  
  
Ryou was finally awake, though still sleepy. He was curled up against Bakura in one corner. Malik looked bored to death. Yami and Yugi were sitting directly opposite to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, doing most of the talking.  
  
"So... you guys are spirits from Ancient Egypt?"  
  
Yugi nodded. "Yami and Yami Bakura are."  
  
"Bloody hell..."

"And he," Harry pointed to Noa, "is Seto's older brother."

"Older step-brother, except now I'm virtual and have no body," Noa replied airily.

"Bloody hell..."  
  
"Those... Millennium Items," Hermione said slowly. "They're the ones that Voldemort's after, right? I wonder why he hasn't tried to attack you yet. You say there are seven? Do you think the other item holders are safe?"  
  
"I guess so... Isis – she's my sister – can defend herself pretty well, and Shaadi pretty much disappears unless he needs to say something about the cosmic balance or that kind of crap."  
  
They had told Harry, Ron, and Hermione the complete and total truth (unlike with Dumbledore). It was probably all for the better. Now... to see if they would accept the fact that...  
  
"You guys are together?" Harry asked, motioning to Ryou and Yami Bakura, and then to Yugi and Yami.  
  
"Yeah. You... don't mind, do you?"  
  
"No! Not at all." At this, Malik snorted.  
  
"Are you sure?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "You will be once you start hearing these sounds everywhere." The three looked a little uncertain at this. Yugi hastily interrupted before they could say anything.  
  
"Okay! Then it's settled! Uh, we're sorry for leaving you in the dark for so long. You see, we can't really trust too many people nowadays." Yugi smiled apologetically at them.  
  
"Yeah... with all those people set out to kill you... It's almost as bad as Harry!" said Ron shakily.  
  
Malik coughed. Loudly.  
  
And Hermione turned her eyes towards him. "YOU were one of the people trying to 'completely and utterly destroy' Yugi, isn't that right, Malik?"  
  
"Um... I've reformed...?"  
  
She grinned, seemingly forgiving him, and turning back to the others. The atmosphere seemed a lot lighter. "Alright. From now on, no more secrets," she said. "Friends?"  
  
"Yeah. Friends."  
  
The group that made their way back down the cliff and to Hogwarts was a very cheery one indeed.

.O.O.O.O.O.

.O.O.O.O.O.

Holy. Shit. That was an awful end to this chapter. I'm really going to have to improve on my writing. I'm sorry, guys. You shouldn't have to read crummy writing like this. sigh I think I might have writer's block. Well... every single time I have a good idea, I never bother to write it down. And then... I forget it all. I'm hopeless, I tell ya. So... review if you want. Although I think it's rather pointless, since this chapter sucked so much.  
  
And.... If you want to read the stuff down below, which I wrote in... MAY, you can. It's probably best not to, though. Pointless stuff. Dumb rantings. Idiotic things.

.O.O.O.O.O.

.O.O.O.O.O.

.O.O.O.O.O.

All-State's over, after about 7 hours of non-stop violin playing. Well, we did get to have lunch, but that was about it. It was... full rehearsal, sectionals, lunch, full rehearsal, and then the concert. Wonderful, eh? The full rehearsals were about two or three hours long, the sectionals (Ms. Johnsen scared the crap out of the people who didn't go to our school. Go Ms. Johnsen!) were over an hour, and then the concert took up the rest of the time. I am definitely NOT going to do this next year. My neck hurt, my shoulders hurt, my arms hurt, the fingers on my left hand hurt, and most importantly, my butt hurts from all that sitting! Besides, it's not like I can rank any higher than concertmaster, so who cares?  
  
Oopsies. Sorry for ranting on like that.  
  
Sapphire: I wanna lollipop!  
  
Silver: Oh, no. Not again. I thought I'd gotten rid of you!  
  
Sapphire: Nya! I'm not that wimpy! A few hexes, curses, frying pans, and hours of violin playing won't hurt me! I was the one who kept on talking to you during All-State to keep you sane, remember?  
  
Silver: More like making me insane. I almost started screaming bloody murder.  
  
Oh, and one more thing. Do you guys want to be able to do unsigned reviews? I just realized that I was only accepting signed reviews. So, do you want unsigned reviews? As my friend brought up, I'd probably get a whole lot more reviews that way. And don't forget to vote for the Draco/Hermione thing! Arigatou, and sayonara!


	13. OWL Results

Alright... to make up for the really stinky chapter last time, I've decided to start on this one almost immediately. Um... I hope you guys like it! I haven't really had too many ideas lately – this is all from a few months ago. I kind of planned the whole story when I first started. And also, I noticed that I'd pretty much forgotten about Mokuba, everyone's pets, Dracilla, some other students, Hagrid, one of my ideas, and – gasp! – Seto's birthday! Seto fans are going to hate me now... so I'm going back and fixing it! I'm going to rewrite their O.W.L. week too. I think I just rushed by that and didn't put too many details. But for now, the next chapter!

WAIT WAIT WAIT! is screwing up again, so now I can't do the two slashes that indicate Yami talking. So whenever you see... um... here, I'll underline his text. That might work. I'll try to fix it later, but for the time being, Yami gets the underlined text. I can't do my little thingy to separate stuff, so I guess I'll be using the lines this time.... grr....

* * *

Classes had gone back to normal by the next week. Yugi-tachi's and the other three Gryffindors' – as well as Draco's – friendship, had, if anything, gotten even stronger. And, for one thing, Harry, Hermione, and Ron had stopped jumping a mile every time Yami or Yami Bakura popped out. That... was definitely an improvement.

During breakfast on Wednesday, there was a blue shimmer in the air. Dozens of letters dropped from it, falling into their owner's laps. The people getting the letters were all sixth years.

Ryou raised an eyebrow at Seto. Nefertari had obviously done this.

"Oh my gosh!" Hermione squeaked excitedly, biting her nails and practically chewing her fingers off. "It looks like our O.W.L. results! Oh, oh, here comes ours! I can't wait to see what I got – I think I did fairly well on everything. But there was that little bit in the Arithmancy class, ooh... I really hope that didn't affect my overall score too much! Do you think –"

"Hermione," Ron said. "We're all feeling the same way. Now you can just calm down, open your letter, and read it." He himself was looking quite pale.

There was almost complete silence in the Great Hall. Sounds of tearing paper started coming from all the House tables. The professors looked anxious as well. Perhaps it was because of the fact that the student's grades reflected upon how well they were teaching. And... this was probably the first time students had gotten their results back during their presence.

First, second, third, and fourth years were holding their breaths, trying to see over the shoulders of the nearest sixth years. The fifth years were maybe even more scared. They had seen how the sixth years had reacted to taking the O.W.L.s again. Was that how they were going to be like at the end of the year? When they had to take it for themselves?

Then came a very long pause, as the recipients of the letters quickly read through their results with baited breaths.

Then came the chatter of conversation. It came gradually, as more people took in their results, whether good or bad. There were relieved sighs, moans about how they could have done better, and... overall chaos and heads banging on tables.

"— I did better than I thought!"

"— can't believe I got one 'Acceptable!'"

"— look at this! Only two 'Exceeds Expectations!'"

"— a good thing. I can show this to my parents now."

"— yeah, I'm kind of glad they didn't see it first."

Ryou... was one of the ones banging his head on the table.

"Doshite [1](bang), doshite (bang), doshite (bang), doshite (bang), doshite?" He moaned, finally hiding his head in his arms. "Ugh... why? Why me?" he asked at the ceiling, to nobody in general. He was about to start whacking his head with _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_, when Yami Bakura suddenly took over, his eyes narrowing.

"What is this rubbish?" he asked, snatching up Ryou's O.W.L. results and reading through them quickly. The others watched him with perplexed expressions.

:Yaaaaami... my life is over...:

::Your life is certainly not over. It's just one –::

:I know, but... but...:

::Yes – now that's the spirit. Now get out there and tell them all why you started spasmodically killing your own head with the table.:: And with that comment, Ryou was thrown back into his own body, by none other than his wonderful, loving yami.

Ryou blinked. Everyone was peering at him with... strange... looks on their faces.

"Um... what's wrong?" Malik asked. "Bad results?"

Ryou nodded bleakly.

Malik sighed. "Lemme see." He grabbed the little white-haired bishounen's letter. "Mr. Bakura, blah blah blah... blah blah... Oh. This must be what the problem is." He sighed, looking over at Ryou. "Ryou, you got ONE 'Exceeds Expectations.' That's nothing to be hammering your head into the table for."

Ryou sniffed. "Why?"

"Because I got THREE 'Exceeds Expectations.' You don't see me trying to kill myself, now, do you? And look – yours is in History of Magic. Nobody could pass that. Oh, wait a minute." He leaned over to look at Seto and Hermione's results. "Never mind. Let me rephrase that. Only geniuses could pass that class with 'Outstanding'. And every other exam," he added under his breath.

Ryou obviously hadn't heard, or either had heard and not comprehended. "Yes, but... but... it was one of the last exams, and... and... I was just feeling so tired, and I just couldn't remember... and... and..."

"RYOU. IT'S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD."

Ryou blinked. "It... isn't?"

"NO. Now shut up and let me see what everyone else got."

Hermione's scores were obvious. She was beaming, taking extreme care not to wrinkle her paper in the slightest.

"What did she get to be so happy?" Ron muttered to Harry.

Malik, who'd heard them, replied, "Oh, only 'Outstanding' O.W.L.s in all of her exams."

"Yes! My parents are going to be so pleased!" she said giddily. "Although I'm not really sure what career I'm going to take. Choosing has been a bit difficult, considering my parents are both Muggles, and –"

"Good for you, 'Mione," Harry said, giving her an encouraging smile. "I'm sure you'll do well in whatever you choose." Now, for his own results...

"Hey, mate, what did you get?" asked Seamus, leaning over from across the table.

Harry had actually not done nearly as awfully as he'd thought. He'd scraped by the Potions theory AND practical with 'Outstanding', which he was glad for. He could get into Snape's N.E.W.T. class (as much as he'd hate to see Snape even more), and maybe get his wish of becoming an Auror, a dark wizard catcher. And as for the other three 'Exceeds Expectations,' he'd probably deserved them. The History of Magic, Transfiguration, and Charms tests were rather hard this year. Luckily, McGonagall and Flitwick took anyone who got 'Exceeds Expectations' into their N.E.W.T. classes.

Voicing all of this out loud, he looked up. Hoping that Ron hadn't failed too many examinations to not be able to become an Auror with him, he leaned over to look at the redhead's piece of parchment. Ron was still staring at it in disbelief.

"What is it?" Harry asked. Ron's mouth moved wordlessly. He tried again.

"...I – I passed... I p – passed..."

"You passed... what?"

"P – P – _Potions_. I got an 'Outstanding.'"

"Ron, that's great!" Hermione said happily. "That means that you can get into Snape's N.E.W.T. class – you'll need that to become an auror, won't you? What else did you get?"

"Four 'Exceeds Expectations,' one each in History of Magic, Charms, Care of Magical Creatures, and Transfiguration, as well as one 'Acceptable' in Divination," Malik read aloud. Ron, finally coming out of shock, grabbed the letter back. Malik grinned, lilac eyes shining with mirth.

"And what did you get, Malik?" Yugi asked.

"Um... all 'Outstanding' and three 'Exceeds Expectations.' History of Magic's just too boring, I hardly ever pay attention in 'Magical Creatures... and I figured no one could pass Divination –"

"I did," Ryou said, looking as if he was realizing his results for the first time.

"What?" said Ron incredulously. "What did you do during the exam? Brainwash the examiner? I mean, you can memorize the book for the theory part, but the practical is another story."

"Oh well, figures," Malik sighed. "Ryou's been doing stuff like that even before we came here."

Dean, who had came over just in time to catch those last few comments, whispered, "Yeah, Ron – remember those Tarot cards of his? He was doing some pretty accurate readings."

Mokuba suddenly appeared. "Hey, what about you, Yugi? What did you get?"

"Oh – I got two 'Exceeds Expectations' from Care of Magical Creatures and from History of Magic. The rest are 'Outstanding'."

"Cool. Looks like all of you guys got good grades."

"What did Seto get?" Yugi asked, looking around. He found the poor CEO trying to escape a group of girls circled around him.

"So, like, how were your O.W.L. scores, Seto?"

"I bet you got, like, all 'Outstanding', didn't you?"

"Oh, you're sooo smart, Seto!"

"Weren't you given the chance to take it with all the 5th years at the end of the school year?"

"You still took it, like, with the 6th years?"

"After only two months of studying?"

"Wow! That's, like, sooo cool!" 

Mokuba gave Yugi a sheepish grin. "He's been trying to pry them off for some time now – they still won't leave him alone. Oh, and he got all 'Outstanding's. I don't really know which career he'll pick, with Kaiba Corp. back in Domino and all... I heard that you guys have to go to Dumbledore for Career Advice, since you missed it last year. It all pretty much be based on how many classes you got good grades on."

Yugi looked confused. "Nani? I didn't know about that."

"Seto was supposed to tell you. But... I guess he didn't have time yet. You're supposed to go see Dumbledore on Friday. You'll get to take a look at all the wizarding jobs and choose. Then, if you have all the right requirements, you'll get to take certain N.E.W.T. – those are in preparation for the 'Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests' at the end of your seventh year – classes and get a job after you finish Hogwarts."

Tell me – why in the world does Mokuba always seem to know more than us?

/Um... I REALLY don't know./

* * *

Friday came. There was a notice on the board. New schedules were to be handed out Monday, and all N.E.W.T. classes started then too. As for Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto, they had to go see Dumbledore. For some reason, he'd also called Harry, Ron, Hermione, and... Draco, as well. The group of eight trooped up to the stone gargoyle, said "Pocky", and rose up to his office together.

Not only was Dumbledore sitting there, McGonagall and Snape were there as well. Once they had all gotten seated, Dumbledore leaned forward to start.

"First of all, let me say that I am quite pleased, and impressed, with your rising up to the challenge of taking the O.W.L.s." His eyes twinkled. This bit was going to be aimed at Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Seto. "While all other students had five YEARS to prepare, you only had mere months. And yet, your results were quite as stunning as most of our other students, if not more so. And I congratulate you." He smiled at the four. Malik was looking uninterested, Yugi was actually listening, Ryou was in his 'polite mode', and Seto's face was once again devoid of emotion. Dumbledore coughed slightly, continuing. These children were rather difficult to deal with sometimes...

"This is where THESE come in." He made a sweeping gesture over the surface of his desk. Many fluorescently–colored pamphlets, leaflets, and other forms of notices materialized. They could make out some of the words on them – 'Working in the Department of Magical Transport: the Floo Network, Brooms, Portkeys, and Apparation'; 'Do you like working with rare magical creatures and spirits?'; 'Interested in the law? Then consider the Magical Law Enforcement business'; and... 'Aurors, Dark Wizard Catchers.' That was what caught Malik's eye.

"Ooh... what's this?" he asked interestedly, picking up the dark leaflet. His lavender eyes scanned through it. "Hey, Ryou, come look at this." Now Ryou was reading it with him.

"'Catching dark wizards... you'll need five N.E.W.T.s... will have additional years of training outside of school...'" Ryou muttered, still reading.

"Doesn't it sound dangerous?" asked Malik excitedly. "C'mon, we could get KILLED or something and no one would care. Okay, some people would care, but wouldn't that be cool?"

McGonagall was staring at Malik with something of a horrified look on her face. Harry was trying to keep from grinning at her reaction, while Ron and Hermione were looking somewhere in between mystified and dubious. Draco gave Malik the thumbs-up, and Snape proceeded to keep his I-really-don't-want-to-be-here look on his face. Dumbledore just seemed amused.

Meanwhile, our lovely Egyptian bishie continued to rant. "And you can use your skills – how many blades can you use again? Any type of blade or weapon? AND," he added, sounding impressed, "we'll get to kill people." He finished with a crazy, sadistic smile. He almost looked... happy.

At this point, Dumbledore cut in. "Mr. Ishtar, I don't think there will be any killing involved. Aurors are most likely to be asked to bring in a live captive."

"Damn... what if it's a life threatening situation?"

"Maybe you'll be permitted to, then. I am not too familiar with those regulations and laws."

The gleam in his eye came back. "Oh, well, good enough."

"What do you say, Ryou?"

::Yes. Say yes, Ryou.::

:Why?:

::BECAUSE you need more guts, for one thing. For another, it sounds like fun.::

: ... sounds like you only want me to take it so you can benefit from it.:

::No, that's not it! RY-OU...::

There was a mild curse on Yami Bakura's side. He sighed. ::PLEASE, Ryou? Onegai?::

Ryou grinned. :Okay, yami. But only 'cause I love you to death.:

::Mm hmm. I know.:: he said in a satisfied manner.

Malik was still waiting for Ryou's answer. "You know who wants me to take it," Ryou told him, throwing a meaningful look the Egyptian's way. "'Kura," he whispered.

"OH. Right. How 'bout you, Seto?"

Seto shrugged. "Auror sounds fine." He said it as if it didn't really matter much. "Although," he added, blue eyes piercing Malik, "I'll still have to manage Kaiba Corp., so it might be rather hard."

"Um... Gotcha, CEO – dude. What about you, Yugi?"

There was no reply. "YUGI," said Malik impatiently, leaning over to read the pamphlet Yugi was looking at.

"'Department of Magical Games and Sports?' I don't think so." He yanked the pamphlet out of Yugi's hands and replaced it with the dark Auror leaflet.

"Don'tcha want to be with the rest of us? I'm sure ATEMU would like it," he added teasingly. "He could learn the stealthy trade, instead of sitting with a stick up his ass on a throne."

Why that little –

/Calm down, Yami. He didn't really mean it. And... being an Auror sounds okay. We can be with the others if we say yes. And I got the right grades on the O.W.L.s to do it./

Wouldn't it be a little dangerous?

/C'mon, Yami – I'm old enough to look after myself!/

Yami felt his other side start pouting. Alright.

Yugi looked up happily. "Hai! He says yes! Er, I mean, I say yes." Professors McGonagall and Snape were still there. He didn't exactly want to ruin their cover. Not yet, anyway.

"Interesting decisions," Dumbledore said, taking back the Auror leaflet and arranging all of the other information sheets back into a neat pile, then motioning to Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape. McGonagall rose, taking a stack of papers with her. She cleared her throat.

"You have all chosen the path of an Auror. This particular job will be very dangerous, as you have already found. It will also be difficult to achieve. The Ministry is now setting higher standards for Aurors. You may not know it, but a whole team of them disappeared mysteriously not one month ago. The Daily Prophet has been asked to stay quiet, as not to frighten our community. Even if you finish all of the required courses, you will still have to manage to pass all of the set tests during your Auror training, which will take a further two to four years. As your heads of houses, it is our responsibility to oversee your work at Hogwarts. Anything beyond that, though, is indefinite. Professor Snape?"

Snape looked coldly in the general direction of Malik.

"You will need to excel in Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, and Charms, at the very least. They require at least five N.E.W.T.s. The more you get, the better. To get into my N.E.W.T. class, you need to have scored an 'Outstanding' in your O.W.L. Which I've seen you've all accomplished," he added sourly.

"Having heard all of this, do you all still wish to become Aurors?" asked Dumbledore.

"Sure," Malik shrugged. "Why not? I mean, it can't be THAT bad."

"I... think he's speaking for all of us on that," Yugi concluded.

"Very well. Now, this leads us to the next reason we are all here. And this is where Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco will come in. Two years ago, the Dark Lord was resurrected once more. Last year, he found inside ways to infiltrate our group and cause pain and injury. He finally struck at the end of the school term. And this year, he is after you – and that's why you are here at Hogwarts. We will need to prevent the same thing from happening again." He sighed and glanced at Snape, although the only ones to notice were Ryou, Malik, and Seto.

"As tough as it may be, my plan is to start up Occlumency lessons again."

Dumbledore's words seemed to echo in Harry's head. Occlumency. Occlumency. He had been forced to take it last year when he started having visions and painful insights into Voldemort's plans. And he had failed to try. He had failed to save Sirius, falling for one of Voldemort's mind tricks instead. Now, all of his friends were being roped into it too. This year, he vowed, this year, he would try as hard as he could. He did not catch the worried looks Ron and Hermione gave him.

"Occlumency..." Seto said quietly, "That's a very unclear branch of magic... It helps set up a barrier in a mind to protect against external access.... Is that right?"

"That is correct. Although there is no telling if Voldemort will try to attempt it again... we must be prepared this time, though. Through Harry, and the bond that you all share, he will be capable of breaking into your minds."

::I doubt it.::

:I'm not so sure, 'Kura...:

"Both Professor Snape and I will be managing lessons," Dumbledore was saying. "We will set a time later. This is mandatory, as you are the ones that Voldemort is after. If we barricade your minds from him, then he will not be able to harm any other students or find valuable information. Not in this way, at least."

"So..." Ryou said hesitantly, "what do we do during these sessions?"

"I'm sure you'll find out soon." Without giving anyone else time to speak, he said briskly, "It is getting late. You'll need to get to sleep soon. Your N.E.W.T. classes have been arranged. Expect your schedules on Monday like the rest of the student body. As for Occlumency, you will all receive memos including the time and date your lessons will take place. Draco, I'll need to talk to you separately."

This was all said with finality, and they were soon shown the door.

"Sheesh!" Malik grumbled. "You'd think that after all these years, that guy would at least learn some manners! He was just kicking us out. Again!"

"Yes, yes, we know," Hermione said. "I just don't understand why he called all of us there. I assume Draco's going to be taking Occlumency too, but... why talk to him separately?"

At this, Harry and Ron exchanged guilty looks.

"Oh well," she went on. "I suppose we should just go to our common rooms. There's no telling how long he'll be...."

* * *

[1] Doshite – Why

[2] Nani – What

[3] Hai – Yes

Grr... I did it again! I almost completely forgot about this... T.T And school has also started, so I'll be trying to manage both at the same time. This was a pretty uneventful – and short – chapter. But keep in mind, all my extracurricular activities are starting now. sigh And the Draco/Hermione thing is still pretty indefinite. When I have time, I'll go back and count every single vote. And I won't mess up this time. Promise. I think....

Anywho, I'm a techie this year! Yay! And I get to be in it with one of my best friends, Anna-chan! Go check out her stories. Her pen name is: Slithers. We get to wear all black, and work the sounds and lights, and make the props and stuff. It's going to be awesome! Especially since we'll have a new auditorium and everything. So starting in October, I'll have afterschool rehearsals with the actors. Encore (our top acting group) will be doing Canterbury Tales. It'll be even harder to keep up with ! Uh oh...

But I'll try. I really will.

So... fare thee well, and may thy journey be successful! (That's from Anna.)

"Give me your homework or I'll poke you in the stomach with this french fry!" (That's also from Anna.)

DON'T MELT INTO AN ICECUBE AND GO TO SLEEP! AND DON'T USE PLASTIC CAULDRONS, SNAPE! THEY WILL MELT WHEN YOU PUT THEM IN THE MICROWAVE!

Sapphire: o.O She has cracked....

Silver: I CRACKED A LONG TIME AGO!


	14. Occlumency

Once again, Silver Saire has to apologize. T.T I'm so sorry for the long wait! What happened was I got writer's block and then died on a glacier and came back to life reincarnated as a rock and then melted into an light bulb and got into something else and then started getting behind in my other work and… and… and….

Oh, what's the use… I've just had writer's block for a really long time. _winces_ Please don't kill me, please don't kill me, please don't kill me, please don't – _looks up_ I… I'm not dead! Yay! T.T Thad to take this big 8th grade computer test thing and now I have to take the AMC test thingy (American Math Contest) because my Geometry teacher's making me… . !

Also, some people have actually guessed part of what's about to happen, and I congratulate you. Those of you who've figured what's going to happen with and the (I love playing hangman – it's so much fun) should know who you are, since I've e-mailed you telling you. Although there might be a few I missed… tell me your theory again in your review for this chapter and I'll reply through e-mail or something.

I know if I accepted unsigned re grade computer test thing and now I have to take the AMC test thingy (American Math Contest) because my Geometry teacher's making me… . !

Also, some people have actually guessed part of what's about to happen, and I congratulate you. Those of you who've figured what's going to happen with and the (I love playing hangman – it's so much fun) should know who you are, since I've e-mailed you telling you. Although there might be a few I missed… tell me your theory again in your review for this chapter and I'll reply through e-mail or something.

I know if I accepted unsigned reviews, I'd probably get a lot more… but at this point, I don't think I'll be changing that. Maybe after I've finished this story or something – I've gotten this far without anonymous reviews…. But you can tell me your views through AIM, if you're one of those who are either too lazy to sign in, don't feel like it, or just don't have a penname, and think it's better for me to accept unsigned reviews. Or… you can just IM me randomly on AIM, if you're a fan of this story. . That'd be cool. My screen name is syz227 I rarely use my silversaire account on AIM.

Okay, I've talked too much. Now you get to read my less-than-quality-work chapter…!

* * *

N.E.W.T. classes had started. Was there any more to say? For the 6th years, it meant starting to take things more seriously, to start thinking about the future. They only had a little less than two years left in school, after all. The homework load was immense. Even people like Hermione had a hard time finishing it. For other people… well… they just had to improve their copying and 'editing' skills.

"Ow…." Malik grumbled, setting his quill (he'd figured out how to use them) down and shaking his left hand around to the point that Draco thought that it would fall off. The Egyptian sighed, now wiggling each and every one of his fingers.

"Haha. Getting used to it now, are we?" asked Draco teasingly. "You're not getting away with copying all my homework this time. You actually have to learn something to become an Auror, y'know." But he, too, put his quill back in the inkbottle that they were sharing and stretched languidly, adding a huge yawn.

"Ugh. We've also got our first Occlumency lesson tonight…" came Malik's muffled voice from the book in which his face was buried. "Ten o'clock? Who assigns a class at ten o'clock?" he protested weakly, eyes drooping from sleepiness. "For all we know, the class could end somewhere around midnight! We'll never get our essays done…."

"Ha. And this is coming from a weird, crazy insomniac that stays up until 5 without sleep? Here – you did the one on 'Warlocks During the Renaissance,' right? And I'm doing the ones that Snape and McGonagall assigned. All we have to do is finish Flitwick's 'Charms for House-Cleaning' and Lupin's 'Hupok Safety,' and we'll be done. I think we can manage it between the two of us. If not, then… well… we can always _persuade_ someone."

"Mmhmm…." It seemed like Malik was asleep, but then he said suddenly, "Oh, that's right – what did Dumbledore have to talk to you about that night? After he kicked the rest of us out of his office?" He was looking questioningly up at Draco from where his head was resting on his forearms.

"My father," Draco answered, keeping his voice even. "It's only a matter of time before he breaks out of Azkaban with the rest of Voldemort's supporters, since dementors are going over to the dark side soon enough. I mean, Voldemort can provide them with much more souls than the stupid Ministry can. And when Lucius does break out… he's probably going to come looking for me. Dumbledore suggested a Fidelius Charm – you know, the same one that they used on Harry's parents, until… until they got betrayed by Wormtail."

"And…?" Malik prodded.

"And… I said that I would think about it, and I think… um… Malik, could you be my Secret-Keeper? Please?"

Malik blinked. He tilted his head to one side. "Sure! … Just tell me what it is and what I have to do."

Draco almost chucked his copy of _227 Magical Aromatic Plants and Mushrooms_ at his companion.

"Gosh… I can't believe you still don't know." He sighed. It was time for another Rare and Complex Charms 101 for Malik. "Okay, the Fidelius Charm. It's a pretty complicated spell, and only few can perform it. It involves the magical concealment of a secret inside a single soul. In the Potters' case, it was Wormtail. The information is hidden inside the chosen person, or Secret-Keeper, which is what I want you to be for me. The info then will be impossible to find, unless the Secret-Keeper spills."

"Wow," Malik said. "It sounds… important."

"IT IS."

"Oh. Okay then! I'll be your Secret-Keeper person!"

"Ugh… why am I not feeling reassured?"

"Hey! Don't you trust me?"

"Of course. That's why I asked you in the first place! But you're not being serious about this! It could probably mean life or death for me!"

Malik rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine, you weirdo. How about this?" He stopped grinning idiotically and sat up straight, looking straight into Draco's silver-grey eyes. To Draco, It felt as if his very soul was getting pierced, with Malik's stare.

"I swear on my life, soul, and spirit," Malik said solemnly, "that I will not reveal your secret. I'd rather die first than betray my friend." The whole time he said this, his face had remained completely devoid of emotion. It was almost scary, how grave Malik was.

"Uh…." The other Slytherin was lost for words.

"What now?" Malik asked exasperatedly, now seemingly back to normal. "Do you want me to seal the pledge with my blood or something? Actually, I really wouldn't mind – "

"No! No… that was good," Draco said softly.

* * *

Half an hour later…

"Mm… no, Mariku… let me sleep for a little longer…."

"Malik… Malik. It's time to go. Wake up…!" Draco shook his friend on the shoulder, but to no avail. Malik was still drooling. "Come on," Draco said, sighing and dragging his friend out of the chair. They were actually up in their private dormitory (which Dumbledore had granted them at their request.) After all, most of the other Slytherins avoided them because either a) they were scared of Malik, b) they hated Draco, c) they hated Malik too, d) they were 'Gryffindor-huggers,' or e) … well, there wasn't really another reason. Heheh…

Somehow Draco managed to get Malik semi-awake and all the way up to Dumbledore's office. They were the first ones, besides Snape and Dumbledore, who had been deep in conversation before they'd barged in. The Gryffindors were late. Again.

* * *

"No no no! We have to go!"

_Slam._

"But – "

"THERE'S NO TIME TO FEED YOUR STUPID STINKIN' CAT!"

_Thump._

"Ow!"

_Crash._

"Get off of me, 'Kura…."

"MEOWR!"

"GET THAT BLOODY OWL AWAY FROM MY CAT! IT'S MOLESTING HIM!"

_Thud._

"No, seriously, guys. I really think we have to go now."

"SHUT UP!"

"Ouch… fine! See if I care about YOU people. I'm going by myself then!"

Silence.

"Ah! No! Wait! Ryou!"

At this, a mad scramble for the portrait hole ensued.

* * *

"Hey," greeted a slightly disgruntled looking Ryou, stepping into the office and slamming shut the door.

"Um… hi Ry – "

"Ryou! We told you to wait for us! Ow!" Distant voices were heard in the corridor. Three seconds later, the others tumbled in through the door with a crash. Ryou neatly sidestepped them. They landed in a heap of limbs.

"Ow…."

"Get off my head!"

"… you're sitting on my fingers."

Snape and Dumbledore were confused. Very confused.

* * *

"Okay. Is everyone _sure_ that they are all alright now?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now we can begin."

Dumbledore stepped forward. "We thought for the first few sessions or so it would be easier as a group," he said. "In the next few months, your group members may vary according to level of skill, or perhaps just randomly selected to test for best results. Sometimes, when the presence of a close one – a friend or relative, maybe – better concentration is achieved." He shrugged, but there was still a twinkle in his eye. "I don't know. I have never tried this kind of thing before. Oh, and another thing. Seto is suffering from a headache, so he has informed me that he won't be joining us today. Now… to begin."

He clapped his hands. "So. I think we should all be on a first-name basis starting from now on."

Snape looked like he was going into mental shock.

"Headmaster…"

"Yes, Severus – you too. It has been proved that the mind would be more relaxed if there is less tension between two people. Calling by last names is very formal-like, and represents an air of unfamiliarity with others. It would do well for you to participate as well."

Dumbledore practically was cackling with glee. He was very out of character today. "I know most of you are very familiar with each other," he said, "but for our sakes, and to refresh any memories… we will go around in a circle and re-introduce ourselves, just as if we'd all just met for the first time today. Ah. Draco, as you were the first one here, would you please start for us?"

"Draco Malfoy," Draco said, speaking the word 'Malfoy' with something almost like disgust.

"Anything else?"

"What? Uh… age 16, born and raised in England, an only child, and…" he grinned wickedly, "I am not gay, despite contrary belief." There was silence. "I'd probably say that I was bi more than anything else."

Yugi started giggling uncontrollably, clutching his sides in mirth. Ryou was smiling in an amused way, and Dumbledore coughed slightly. Hermione was blushing, Ron and Harry not much better off than her with equally red faces.

"Malik Ishtar, age 15, born in Egypt. I have one older sister, Isis, and have lived in various parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia," Malik continued, with a completely straight face. Then… "Unlike my friend Draco here, I'm most probably entirely homosexual – "

"Despite what many girls hope," Draco inserted helpfully.

"Yes, and for you guys out there, I'm sorry, but I'm also already taken," Malik finished dramatically. He turned to Draco, laughing. They high-fived, ignoring the fact that Ron, Harry, and Hermione were still beet red.

'_Crazy teenagers, crazy abnormal teenagers, crazy sadistic psychopath teenagers… I never should have accepted this job,_' Snape thought feverishly, shutting his eyes. '_Too much information…._'

"Ryou Bakura, age 16, born in Japan," Ryou started thoughtfully, searching for more facts. "And he is COMPLETELY gay. Deal with it," a silky voice purred. The instant those words were said, it was Ryou again. He gasped, and then covered his mouth with his hands. "What did he just say?" he asked in a panicky voice. "Ugh… 'Kura…! I'm going to _kill_ you…!"

With that statement, Ryou's eyes became glazed. He was no doubt trying to harm a certain silver-haired crimson-eyed yami.

Malik smiled calmly, said, "Please ignore Ryou for a moment," and then motioned for the next person to introduce himself.

"Yugi Motou, um… age 16, born and lived in Japan all my life except now… and…"

* * *

Blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda. Let's just skip the rest, shall we? Actually, if somebody sends in some info that every person can say, I might come back and change it. So… if you think you have something good, please send it in your review! . On to Occlumency!

* * *

"Occlumency is not, as many muggle-born think, reading minds. Legilimency is the ability to extract feelings and memories from another person's mind. That is quite different from this 'reading mind' idea that some people have." Snape's lip curled, and his eyes flickered over them all. "Now, before you actually begin learning about how one might go about protecting their mind from prodding enemies, we will conduct a little… test." His eyes darkened in anticipation. Harry did not feel safe at all.

"_Legilimens!_" The movement was sudden, and certainly unexpected. Ryou, who had been sitting there blankly ever since he'd gone into his soul room, convulsed. Just once. Then his eyelids fell shut, and he slumped over in his seat.

* * *

**Ryou's POV. Kind of.**

"_Legilimens!" _He had barely heard it, and now…

Image after image flew through his mind, a blur of color. Painful memories, mixed in with happy ones.

He was six, crying because his first pet had died. He was eight, and his sister, Amane, was smiling and waving at him through an open window. Then… there was blackness. It was cold. Because of Amane's death, so sudden and abrupt… the funeral of his sister, and then his mother….

_No…_ his mind protested. He did not want to relive these moments.

He was hunched over in bed, sobs wracking his body. Overcome by misery and grief. So alone… in an empty, dark house. His father, away on another excavation, unable to provide any comfort. He was becoming quiet, talking less. His teachers, noticing the change, sending home letters and notes to parents who weren't there.

And then… the Millennium Ring. He was twelve, welcoming his father home for the first time in six months. It had been a gift, from a random stall in a marketplace in Egypt. His father, leaving for Africa again just a week after giving him the item.

Then, that fateful day. He was slipping the Ring over his head. It had started to glow, the light blinding him and the hot metal burning his skin. He couldn't move, he couldn't scream. And then, it was all over. There was somebody standing in the shadows….

He looked just like Ryou. Close enough to be twins. Soft silver hair, pale skin. But his eyes… they were red. Crimson red, like a bottomless pool of blood. And before Ryou could speak, he found himself pinned to the wall, dagger at his throat. A single drop of blood fell to the floor.

* * *

**Snape's POV**

I decided to attack the pale boy – Ryou – without warning, to test him, as well as to somewhat demonstrate to the others how it would be like.

"_Legilimens!"_

I had caught him unprepared (of course). It was easy to break into his mind. There was a brief flash of brilliant white light, and I gasped, overcome by the mass of thoughts, memories, and emotions.

… A news report, of a drunken truck driver who had hit a passing car with two passengers. Stunned disbelief. Denial. A young boy, dressed in black, placing flowers at a grave. Afterwards, he had cried. Cried for days. Then, the same boy, clearly a little older, was sitting at a desk, writing letter after letter, but never sending them. He went to the little gravestones frequently. I felt the boy's resentment toward his father, who was never home, and always on archeological assignments.

He had separated himself from the outside world, staying alone in an empty house. Then, when he looked about eleven or twelve, his father returned once more, to give him something that he'd bought in Egypt. It was a strange looking golden ring, with an eye of Horus in the center. His father returned to Africa not a week after he gave Ryou the object.

But Ryou was no longer alone. The ring had emitted a bright, golden light. I watched as another boy – identical to Ryou – stepped out from the shadows. Before I could blink, the other Ryou had him trapped, a gleaming dagger cutting into the skin of his pale neck.

I stopped looking. It had been enough. Usually, this tortured victims to no end, this flash of horrible or private memories. But… I found that I couldn't. The images kept on coming. This had never happened before. Usually, I was in complete control. But the memories continued to blur across my eyes. What was going on?

I saw Ryou call the other 'Yami,' and 'Bakura.' I saw Ryou, scared of him, scared of his threats and psychotic nature. He got punished every day. I saw, more than once, a knife coming down and conjuring up more blood. Ryou was scared for his friends, and tried to stay away from them so that they wouldn't get hurt. It didn't work. This 'Bakura' person, who had appeared so suddenly (was he a spirit?) seemed to take pleasure in inflicting pain upon others. I watched him rip souls out, mutilate bodies, torture his victims. It made Ryou cry.

And then, it started to change. It was so sudden I thought I'd skipped a couple of years. And… I saw perhaps more than I would have liked to see.

* * *

**Ryou's POV**

I shut my eyes, but the vivid images kept on coming. I saw Bakura, sadistically licking the blood that had seeped out of his wound. I saw him kill and murder innocent civilians. I remembered trying to kill myself, and him punishing me for trying. Him pulling a knife across my skin so quickly it was like lightning. I saw the blood leaking out, but then it was also him that lapped the liquid up. I saw him standing in the doorway, leaning on the frame, smirking at me, and my confused emotions. I saw him trying to kill everyone, and destroy the pharaoh. It seemed like he had no feeling but hate. Hate hate hate. And that was it. But… I also saw him walking in the rain, getting drenched in the downpour. Saw him lost in his own feelings and mind. I saw… I saw myself, going out with a jacket and umbrella. He'd snarl at me and push me away, but… I saw myself always going back to him, no matter what he did. And I realized… that it had been the right thing to do.

I saw him, leaning in to give me my very first kiss. I felt again my heartbeat rapidly increasing, that rising, content feeling in my chest. These were the memories I didn't want to stop coming. I remembered him, embracing me with unrestrained relief when he found me alive after I had been kidnapped. I saw… remembered… relived… _everything._

Him, telling me that… that he loved me for the first time. And then he had blushed. I remembered… him pressing me to the wall, the many fervent kisses that we shared.

* * *

**Snape's POV**

I was definitely seeing too much. I tried to look away, but it was impossible. No matter how tightly I shut my eyes, the images still flashed through my head.

I witnessed Ryou and the other exchange kisses, hugs, and other silly expressions of intimacy. They were truly in love with each other, it seemed. (Bakura still mass-murdered whenever he felt like it, though.) They got closer and closer. (But Bakura stole regularly to keep his 'skills' polished.)

Christmas – I watched Bakura stuff snow down Ryou's shirt and then kiss him silly, still on the snow covered ground. New Year's – They had gone to the shrine together, and written their wishes. Ryou's said, 'I wish 'Kura would stay with me forever.'

Two more years passed in the span of two minutes. I saw Yugi and Malik, understood their relation with Ryou. I saw Seto, and the Battle City tournament. I shivered at the cards' power, and the darkness of the Shadow Realm. I saw Bakura seemingly betray Ryou, take over his body. But then I saw him protect Ryou, against a magnificent red dragon. Battle City was over in an instant. After a flood of more memories, it was summer again.

Then… came Hogwarts. I saw the letters, Diagon Alley, the train ride to Hogwarts, and Hogsmeade. I heard the Sorting Hat's words, tasted the food again at that feast on the first day. I saw the spirit taking advantage of Ryou's every spare minute to tantalize him, but at the same time playfully taking over once in a while to fool around with Malik. But there were still nights that forced me to look away. I saw Bakura paying for his actions by having to mind wipe countless students and professors. I remembered him causing great confusion in the Great Hall with Malik. Despite what it looked like, the two were rather close. I felt Ryou get angry at Bakura's antics, but never for too long. He was very forgiving.

* * *

**Ryou's POV**

The memories were still going in fast-forward, until I finally arrived at recent memories not an hour old. 'Kura had been sitting on my stomach, quizzing me on Transfiguration (the book had been balanced on my chest). Then I remembered that it was time to go. Nobody listened to me. I started for Dumbledore's office alone physically, but I had 'Kura there spiritually to talk to me. I arrived first. We had then started introductions… 'Kura said something weird… and so I went into his soul room to lecture him. He had begun to mince my words, his eyes silently laughing at me, when it happened. The bright light came when I was banging my head into the wall with frustration (hehe)…. And… ow. Total blackness.

* * *

"What the fuck did you do to my hikari!"

"Calm down, 'Kura, take deep breaths," Malik coached unhelpfully.

"I don't want to calm down," Yami no Bakura snarled. "_He_," he pointed an accusing finger at Snape, "said something, and Ryou just suddenly blanked out! He's not answering to me anymore!" A ball of Shadows started to form at Yami no Bakura's fingertips.

_Uh oh. Not good_, Malik thought.

There was a tense silence. Snape's face was a mixture of surprise and confusion, and Malik was willing to bet that it wasn't because of Bakura. _Something_ had happened between Snape and Ryou.

Yami no Bakura stepped forward threateningly, glaring at Snape with enough hatred to send him on a ride to the Shadow Realm, Hell, and back.

"No…!" came a weak voice. Ryou had his arms encircled around Bakura's midsection tightly.

"Stop… don't harm him, 'Kura. See – I'm not hurt or anything…! Can you please put that magic away?"

Yami no Bakura turned, so abruptly the movement almost shook Ryou off. Ryou crumpled to the floor, holding his head. The sphere of Shadow magic had disappeared.

"Oww…" Ryou muttered, massaging his head with one hand. Yami no Bakura stretched out a hand, yanking Ryou back up when he took it.

: What's wrong? Are you alright:

Ryou winced. "Yeah. My head just feels like it's going to split into a million and five pieces and then get charbroiled down in hell. In other words, it feels like shit. It… it hurts to talk through the link." He offered a feeble smile, but almost fell onto Yami no Bakura. His yami held him up, but Ryou still rested his head in Bakura's shoulders. "Mm… dizzy…. I'm going to go lay down for a bit," he murmured, so close to Bakura that his lips brushed against his yami's neck when he spoke. Then he disappeared. Yami no Bakura started to go too, but –

:No. You can stay there and listen for me.:

:But…:

:'Kura, please:

Yami no Bakura frowned, but reluctantly took the seat next to Malik.

Harry was confused. This hadn't happened to him. Snape was perplexed. Why had this happened? The others were worried. Would this happen to them?

Dumbledore coughed lightly. "Why don't we… uh… begin actual lessons now. Severus, talk to me after the session."

Snape nodded mutely, and then closed his eyes for a brief second, as if recollecting himself. Then he spoke, in the same tone he always took, although he sounded a tiny bit shaken.

"Under normal circumstances, the subject would have stayed conscious. What you have just witnessed was slightly different from the average result. Now, I would like you to all free yourselves of every thought. Clear your mind. Let go of all emotion."

They stayed in total silence for about a whole minute.

"Open your eyes," Dumbledore said. He walked around so that he was facing Draco. "Severus and I will perform the spell on each one of you, in turn," he told them. "Try to block us out. You might feel a slight pressure, as if somebody is trying to open a door to your head. Keep that door locked and closed. Good luck to all of you."

* * *

**Draco's POV**

It was hard to let go of every single thought. Have you ever tried it? _Something_ will always run across your mind, like, 'Clear every thought… am I doing it right,' or 'Are all my thoughts cleared yet?' or 'This is hard!' It's virtually impossible to not think, to cast a barrier to intruding forces. After the minute was over, I felt as though I had accomplished nothing. Oh well. I guess practice was necessary here to succeed. But the instant the headmaster started striding to me, I felt my hands get cold. _Why me first?_ Ugh. I was definitely not ready to be tested yet. He acted anyway.

"_Legilimens!_"

I didn't even have a chance to 'block him out.' This occlumency stuff was harder than they had made it sound. A rush of scenes flew past me, but they were rather grey and blurred, and it seemed like I was standing quite far away from where they were speeding through. I was like an unimportant observer, like I was just another person walking down the street. Everything else around me was foggy and cloudish.

Wait a minute… the thing had stopped at one scene, and the different shades of grey were beginning to clear, but just a bit. The fuzzy lines became a little sharper, and I could discern two shapes… hang on. That looked like me! Yes, one of the figures was definitely me – the shorter one. Hmm…. I blinked a couple of times – wasn't that strange? I had blinked… in my memories? Okay. Confused little Draco here… and I've got to stop thinking this much…. So anyway, I squinted, trying to see who the other person was.

No. Wait. WAIT. The picture was getting blurry again! The little square of grey was moving away from me as well. '_Hey! I still had to see who that other guy was!_' was the random thought that popped up. Oh well. I let myself get dragged back to my wonderfully uncomfortable chair in Dumbledore's office. Why was I there again? Oh, right. Occlumency. Heh heh. I was pretty spacey today, like a total ditz. Hmm? Why is everyone looking at me that way?

* * *

Dumbledore's brow furrowed. Maybe it hadn't been such a great idea for them to have one big lesson together. These cases were rather… strange, and it was no doubt awkward for the rest to watch as the spell was cast on the 'victim.' '_Yes, way to go, Albus_,' his mind provided sarcastically. Draco had just sat there, stiff. His eyes had still been open, which was irregular. They had been distant, blank pools of grey, as if he was gazing at something extremely far away, far away in a sense that nobody else would ever be able to see it. And then, when he had actually broken Draco's defenses, everything had been so colorless and bleak, without much detail. What had really surprised him was the fact that he had seen Draco standing on the other side of the river of blurred grey. This Draco's eyes were clear, and full of life, trying to study the pictures carefully. He had been completely conscious and actually very separate from the memories. In other words, Draco had been viewing them from third person, rather than first person, which was the norm for most subjects.

Dumbledore had decided. He coughed lightly. "I… think we will end this session for now," he said abruptly.

"Wha…?" Ron looked confused. "But… but I haven't even gone yet!"

"The whole world isn't revolving around you, human," Yami no Bakura said harshly. "So shut up."

"After considering carefully," Dumbledore continued, "I have decided that this group will be broken up into pairs or small groups of three or four, randomized each week. You will have Occlumency sessions every Tuesday and Thursday still with either Severus or myself, but instead of having one large group and taking longer to get through everybody, we will work with just a few people at a time. It is already half past eleven, and I'm sure you all want to get to bed soon."

'_Say yes, say yes_,' he thought hopefully. Stupid old geezer.

"Um… okay," Hermione said uncertainly. She had really been looking forward to Occlumency lessons, but… if the headmaster said so, then… it was best to obey. That was the Hermione way of thinking.

Harry was glad that he didn't need to do anything more today. He was tired, sleepy, overloaded with homework, and now he could at least drop the nervousness and anxiety that had been bothering him since they had walked sprinted down to Dumbledore's office.

Malik yawned again. "Sure, sure, whatever," he sighed tiredly.

"Okay then! It's all settled," Dumbledore said in relief. "Information will be sent to you by mail. I look forward to the next time we meet! Good night!"

* * *

"Why in the world does he always just kick us out like that?" Yugi fumed. "And we all went there for nothing. 'Clear the mind, clear the mind,'" he mimicked them. "Ha. Why don't they try it for themselves! Sheesh!"

"Uh… he's sleepy. Sleepy Yugi equals grumpy Yugi," Yami offered. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all still looking a bit surprised at Yugi's peculiar behavior.

"Hn. Baka." Yami Bakura vanished into thin air.

"He's got problems," Ron said, shaking his head. "And suddenly disappearing like that – it's like he's Disapparating! Kind of unnerving inside Hogwarts, if you ask me…."

"Did Malik and Draco take another way down to the Slytherin common rooms?" Hermione wondered.

"Uh… dunno. Must have."

* * *

But alas, our two Slytherins were still in Dumbledore's office….

"Professor, we need to speak with you about something," Malik started.

"It's about the Fidelius Charm," Draco added.

"Oh?" Dumbledore peered at them through his weird glasses. "Have you decided on a Secret Keeper?"

"… yes. Malik. I completely trust him."

"Hmm… I see…." Dumbledore put down his cup of tea and sighed. "Well then, I suppose we should get cracking then, hm? The charm takes quite a while to perform. Severus, would you get Professor Flitwick for me please?"

* * *

"Wow. What happened to you two?" Ryou asked carefully the next morning. Both Malik and Draco had dark bags under their eyes, and weren't looking too bright and happy.

Draco's face fell into his (luckily empty) plate. "…fi… lius… arm…." He said inaudibly.

"Uh… I'm sorry. What was that?"

"Something Dumbledore did after you guys left yesterday," Malik groaned, slumping over and leaning on Ryou. "Took a fucking long time, too."

Ron's eyes widened. "You mean…? He? Dumbledore? To you?"

"… pervert."

Ron flushed. Hermione rolled her eyes. Harry grinned.

"Anyway, we'll tell you later. Nobody's technically supposed to know, so… yeah."

Harry glanced over at the staff table. Dumbledore was looking cheery, as always, but Snape was absent. Flitwick was the only other one that looked different than usual, but… that was because he was wearing one sock on his left hand and another (differently colored) on his ear. He wondered if that had anything to do with Malik and Draco. … nah. Probably not.

"Um… alright then. Has anyone seen Seto?" Hermione asked, voice half-muffled because she was digging through her bag. "I have a question about Arithmancy I wanted to ask him before we had to go to class."

"He's still in bed, I think," Yugi told her.

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Seto? Still in bed? Hmm… I wonder if he's not feeling well or something. Yeah… yeah, that must be it." She seemed surprised to hear that Seto was slacking off. "Well then, I'll have to go ask someone else, then… I'll catch you guys later."

"Weird girl, isn't she?" Ron sighed, watching her hurry off to the Ravenclaw table.

* * *

"Where's Seto?"

"Bathroom."

"Um… excuse me, but do you know where Seto is?"

"Common room."

"Heyy… ya'll, like, know Seto, right? D'you know where he, like, is?"

"No. Try the Forbidden Forest." Yugi said, in his soft and high-pitched I'm-too-innocent-and-naïve-to-lie-so-you-can-believe-ANYTHING-I-say voice. Complete with big, googly round purple eyes.

"Nice…," Draco said admiringly.

You're getting better at that,Yami commented.

/I _know,_/ Yugi replied smugly.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione's mouths were open. It looked like they were regarding Yugi in a completely different light.

The girl (blonde, ditzy, stupid, GULLIBLE) 'squee'd, said yelled, "THANK YOU!", and ran over to another group of people. After half a second of quick yabbering, they all dashed out of the Great Hall.

"Ugh… stupid idiot fangirls," Malik muttered, starting to walk up the marble staircase, but only to get stopped by another mob of girls. _Ugh. Ra, I'm _tired._ LET ME SLEEP. PLEASE._

Ra evidently chose to ignore Malik's plea.

"O-M-G," one girl – the mob's leader, it seemed – spelled out. She turned to her 'followers,' speaking loudly to make sure Malik heard. "It's Malik! Let's ask _him_! _He_ should know!" The followers giggled and nodded. She was emboldened. "HI MALIK." Malik said nothing. She waited for an answer, tapping her foot impatiently.

Our poor blond bishie sighed in exasperation, pictured himself ripping the girl's limbs off, and replied. "What, Ann Marie?"

"OH! You remembered my NAME! How kind of you!" She smiled at him, waiting expectantly for another reply.

"Well, you remembered mine," Malik said, as politely as he could without tearing her head off. He imitated her, tapping his foot with annoyance.

"WELL…." Ann Marie said slowly, waiting to see his reaction. Malik almost fell asleep standing up. It looked like Ann Marie had given up her quest to annoy the cute bishie Egyptian. "MeandmygirlfriendswerewonderingwhereSetowassowethoughtyouwouldknowsinceyouhangoutwithhimallthetimeandsoyeahcanyoupleasetellus?"

Malik blinked. But then he realized that it probably didn't matter whether or not he got the exact wording of the phrase. '_Translation Where is Seto Kaiba?_,' he thought to himself. It was time to come up with another random answer. "The dungeons," he told her, yawning. "He and Snape have some sort of secret affair."

Ann Marie had obviously missed the sarcasm. Her eyes widened, bypassing Yugi's, until they were the size of saucers. "O-M-G. NO WAY."

"G'night," Malik said dismissively, starting up the staircase again.

Ann Marie blew a kiss, exclaiming, "Thank you Malik! I love you! Goodnight!" and then running down another passageway to the dungeons, her trail of friends following her like some long, multi-colored tail. She did not see Malik flinch at her statement.

"Where _is_ he?" they heard him mutter to himself.

* * *

Mm… first person POV – it's really not my style. So… if I messed up, I'm really sorry. .;

Yes. Malik is left-handed. . And a vegetarian.

Eh… Snape knows Japanese…? I dunno. .;

I'm sorry this chapter kind of sucked. I had no ideas. But… you'll be glad to hear that I already have the next one done. . And since this is Thanksgiving break… I'll probably be able to post it once I think everyone's ready. Input and suggestions are, as always, welcomed thank you all so much for reading this far!

I can't believe this… I read all of the previous author notes, and… they were from MONTHS ago. . That isn't too good. I can't say how sorry I am, so I won't even try. I don't want to make up excuses, either… ugh. I feel awful for not updating in so long. I hope you don't hate me! >. 

It was my birthday on Sunday! February 27th - I'm 14 now! .


	15. News! News!

Wow. This is nostalgic. Posting here, that is.

Firstly. I want to thank everybody for reading and supporting me, and for not giving up even when I hadn't updated the story for erhm… a few years. I still get reviews every few weeks or so, can you believe that?

So here's the deal. I stumbled upon the files on an old laptop and decided to re-write this (which, to my opinion, is in dire need of editing and sucksss over all). However, something else came out of it, and I invite all to go see.

It's a different story that's deviated quite a bit from this original, so I'm torn between either scrapping this one completely or finishing it with the original plot plans… just to have a finished story. If it was the latter, I'm not sure if I'd be happy with it. My ideas four years ago were embarrassingly juvenile.

I'd very much appreciate it if you gave me some input. Should I put this story to rest or reincarnate it? Also, any thoughts on the mutated offspring of this story are also welcomed. I'm in a bit of a bind for what to do. I honestly only picked up the project because, well… it's winter break of my junior year. Junior year is killer. Junior year means procrastination. Hell if I want to actually work on school-related topics during my winter break. Hahahaha.

Hope everyone has a happy holiday!

Love,

Sushi


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